Numb
by themetrosexualllama
Summary: After the untimely death of his parents, Deidara is transferred by Child Services to a new location with his younger brother. Deidara just wants to move on with his life, so what happens when he meets Sasori? SasoDei, rated T but may move up. Yaoi.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or anything associated. The characters, setting, plot, etc, belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

(A/N): Ahaha, so jeez, this is my first story I'm publishing on here. I didn't think I would be, but I'm actually pretty nervous! Please read, and if you enjoy review.

-x-

Rain drummed against the fogged car window, making a melody of loud taps to Deidara's ears. The whole left side of his face is numb from the cold of the glass, but it doesn't matter to him.

As far as Deidara's concerned, everything's numb now.

The music of the rain, along with Deidara's iPod, fills his ears; and he stares through the hazy glass and into the sopping wet world outside it. A deaden expression of amusement crept through his lips as he saw the dark blue and midnight colors of the sky, as they reminded his of his own mood.

He slowly trails my focus from the window to the right, where his younger brother, Naruto, sits. Deidara feels a pang of guilt as he sees his eyes, partially concealed by his falling blonde bangs. They're usually so light and happy and carefree. But now they're trapped in a murky dark blue gloom of depression.

In the driver's seat is a man the two brothers hardly knew, just some faceless man in a fancy suit from the Child Services. All they heard from his deep, calm explanations of where they were going was a string of lies; warm comforting lies and falsehood that everything would be okay.

Nothing was okay anymore.

-x-

The blonde blinks drowsily as he feels the car lurch to the left, and sees a set of highway signs for some new location through the misted car window. He leans against the glass and turns up his iPod, hoping to catch a nap before they reached their destination.

Deidara's eyes fluttered open as he felt his body shift forward in the car seat, and he woozily grabbed the edges of his seat to keep still. He looked up, eyes still full of sleep, and saw that the driver of their rental car was unclasping his seatbelt and turning the key out of the ignition.

"Nii-san?" Naruto asked, quiet and fragile. Deidara yawned and stretched as he turned to his younger brother, who smiled weakly in return, his whisker-like birthmarks shifting slightly. "We're here" he said softly.

Deidara unclipped his seatbelt and hoisted himself out of the seat, into the rainy world outside. He cringed as he found that the rain was still pouring, and flicked his hood up onto his head. He looked up, his long blonde fringe shifting and falling partially off his eye. His hair was abnormally long, kept in a loose ponytail, but his mother had always fawned over it and his father never minded.

Deidara bit his lower lip at the thought of them, and turned to the car.

The driver had already opened the trunk, resting a large pale brown suitcase on his thigh and holding a black duffel in his other hand. Deidara approached him cautiously, holding his hand out to take a portion of the luggage.

The driver met his gaze with cold, empty black eyes, and emotionlessly handed the blonde the suitcase and a black backpack. Deidara took them, and turned and walked across the small parking lot to the apartment complex's awning.

The blonde turned back and saw Naruto and the driver approaching as well, so he turned the red door's dull golden handle. He entered the warmly lit lobby, sighing in relief as the warmth of the building reached him. He looked around curiously, eying his new surroundings.

The lobby was one of creamy yellow walls, with a dark wood glossy floor. A large intricate red carpet dominated the floor, and was dotted by big cushy arm chairs. A flat screen TV hung on the wall, directly across from the large check-in desk. Aside from that there were the stereotypical paintings of fruit and such, and lamps that gave the room light.

Deidara smiled. He liked it.

The driver entered after Deidara, already drenched from the rain. Naruto was holding a bag over his head, in a failing attempt at an umbrella. Deidara couldn't help but smile when he realized his younger sibling was laughing, a rare thing since recently.

"That's all of the luggage" the driver said, in a serious, deep voice. Deidara felt his happiness drain away instantly as he spoke and nodded solemnly. He followed as the driver walked briskly up to the front desk, where a man in a red vest stood.

"Hello? I assume you're here for the Iwa residency?" the man asked, addressing the driver. The driver nodded, and Deidara smirked as rainwater dripped down the man's face. "Aah. Well then, I'll just need you to sign a few things, and while we handle that, these two can go up to their new apartment" the man said, nodding and smiling.

The driver turned to us, his eyes still emotionless. "Go ahead" he said, handing me a key. It was gold with a plastic keychain that read "L3 R9" and felt cold in Deidara's hand. He turned to Naruto, who simply looked at him through his soaked blonde locks with curiosity.

The ride in the elevator up was silent, and Deidara was uncomfortable as they held their half a dozen or so suitcases and bags. The only sound the carpeted hallway as they walked down was the tune of metal jingling and their rollers on the floor. After what felt like an eternity they reached their new home, and stared at the big wooden door with anticipation. Deidara slowly, tentatively, unlocked the door.

Deidara stepped in and set down his bags, and Naruto flipped the light switch. Light flooded the apartment, and they both cringed for a moment from the brightness.

They were greeted by a large, circular carpet, with an intricate design. The walls were like the ones in lobby, creamy with various painting hung on them. There was an open kitchen, attached to a small hall that led to what Deidara assumed was a bathroom, and a large space of which was occupied by a television, a couch, and two bookcases. The blonde could only assume that the other three doors were bedrooms, and possibly another bathroom.

"This is… nice…" Naruto commented quietly, looking around as well. Deidara nodded in a slightly absent-minded way, and murmured "Yeah, un. Homey". Naruto smiled softly at his brother's comment, and set down his luggage. With a stretch and yawn, he said "I'm going to look for a bathroom; I want a shower and change of clothes". Deidara nodded again, and watched as his younger sibling disappeared behind one of the doors.

Deidara wandered into the kitchen, admiring the shiny appliances and granite counters. He turned around, and blinked as he found a large envelope on one of the counters. He plucked it off the counter, and slid his thumb under the seal to open it.

Deidara blinked in surprise. It was filled with one hundred dollar bills. The blonde flicked through them. There had to be over a thousand dollars worth! As he was occupied by this new discovery, he didn't hear the apartment door unlock.

"That's your living money" a deep, slightly familiar voice commented. Deidara looked up to find their driver at the door, eying the blonde. "You're to use it for food and other necessities, as the apartment does not come with meals. You're allowed to use the money for luxury as well, but that money is to last you till the end of next month. We only give you three excess cash deposits before someone will be sent to live and watch over you", he explained.

Deidara frowned, gazing at the man. He stared at the blonde in a cold, uncaring way, as if he thought Deidara were some brat that would use the money for cocaine and video games.

"Um… Right. Thank you, un" Deidara said, slightly uncomfortable. The driver nodded and took a few more steps inside, looking around the apartment. "This is a two bedroom, two bathroom apartment. The complex is four stories tall, with the first floor being a lobby, the second and third living areas, and the fourth for laundry rooms and such" he explained, and Deidara tried to absorb the information.

"There are twelve rooms total in this building, with five apartments that house four people or more, four for two people, and two for one person. The lobby has multiple computers with free Wi-Fi, the second floor as an arcade, and the fourth has a gym, vending/ice machines, and the laundry room" the driver continued.

"There's one vacant room, as a family just moved out, but other than that the building is full. A maid will come every two and a half weeks, on Thursdays, and there's a map of the town on the counter as well. Any more questions?" the driver said, finally finishing his explanation.

"Um, yeah un. Two actually" Deidara said, rubbing the back of his neck. The driver looked at him expectantly. "Number one, un" Deidara said, holding up a finger. "When are we going back to school?" The driver nodded, and then replied "on Monday. It's Thursday now, so that will give you and your brother a few days to settle in. The school is on your map, and is only a short walk from here".

"Okay, un. Now for question two" Deidara said, waggling another finger. "Hn?" the driver questioned. "Can you write all that stuff you said down un?" Deidara said, smiling and giving a slight laugh. The driver rolled his eyes and, despite his cold demeanor, sincerely hoped this kid would make through.

-x-

In the wee hours of the night, long after Naruto had gone to bed and the driver had left, (Deidara never did catch his name…) Deidara lay on his new bed, face half muffled by his pillow. He was slightly aglow in the pale blue light of his laptop, which he'd forgotten to turn off.

He slipped his hand into the pocket of his discarded jeans on the floor, till his fingers sought purchase on the object he'd been searching for. He smiled softly as he carefully pulled it out, and sat up in bed as he set it in his lap.

It was a still-glossy photograph, of a man and a woman in a green-grassed backyard somewhere. The woman, with long pale blonde hair and a kind smile, was dressed in an apron and a flowery dress as she hugged her husband. The man, with stereotypically slicked back hair of a silvering bronze color, had a spatula in one hand and his wife's hand in the other. He was in mid-laugh, his slightly aged face trapped in an expression of joy.

A loud, choked sob slipped from Deidara's lips. His azure blue eyes filled with tears as he stared at the memory, and he bit his lower lip harshly. He sobbed loudly, as it became harder and harder to inhale. Tears leaked down his face and his body shook and his grip on the photo weakened as he keeled over.

He rolled onto his stomach, eyes blurred with tears as he quavered from the pain, and he wiped his face with his free hand. "M-M-Mom…" he choked out, face becoming completely drenched. "D-dad…" he sobbed, burying his face in the mattress and hugging his pillow. "I, I-I can't b-believe you're gone…"

It took time, but Deidara eventually managed to cry himself to sleep.

-x-

… Tada! XD

Please R&R, cause I can't tell if I'm any good if you don't. XD

Flames will be used to cook my morning toast.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or anything associated. The characters, setting, plot, etc, belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

(A/N): Thanks to everyone who reviewed or favorited and all that jazz for last chapter, and enjoy this one. I'm not too late reviewing am I, just a few days right? As always, R&R this one as well.

There's a considerable amount of swearing in this chapter, so please beware.

-x-

Deidara walked in an absentminded way down the street, his sneakers tapping on the pavement as he marched along. He was on his way to the market to buy food, as the apartment currently had none. He and Naruto had gotten breakfast from the friendly elderly couple next door, and now Deidara was on his way to buy their own meals.

He wore a dark gray short sleeved hoodie and a pair of black jeans, as it was warmer today after the storm. The roads were still wet though, and the scent that lingers after a rain was present in the balmy mid-March air.

Deidara pushed the glass doors of the grocery store open, looking up at his brightly lit surroundings, a bell chime jingling in his ears. He fumbled in his pocket for the grocery list Naruto had given him, and once he found it, read it quietly to himself.

Deidara blinked, and gave a long, low whistle. "Jeez, un. I sure hope you didn't forget anything nii-san, cause this looks like enough stuff to last us till I'm in college un! Bread, Ziplocs, laundry detergent, frozen peas…" he said, laughing lightly to himself. This was typical Naruto. Their mom had always taken to teaching Naruto to cook and clean, so he was the one that could understand all this stuff.

Deidara bit his lower lip at the thought. "_Mom…" _But he soon shook his head, and turned to grab a cart. He wheeled it through the store, whistling to himself. He plucked item after item off the shelves, occupied with his current task.

He glanced back down at his brother's extensive list, and hummed softly to himself. "Hn. I wonder if the frozen stuff is with the dairy..." he wondered aloud, turning absentmindedly. He blinked in shock as he walked straight into something else, his eyes widening as he fell forwards.

It felt like slow motion as Deidara's feet lost their gripping, as his shins buckled, as he went down. Cringing in fear, the blonde only saw a flash of red before he hit the floor.

"Ow, un" he said, cringing as his body contacted with the floor and something else, something hard. His eyes opened, and Deidara clung to his stinging knee. "Jeez, un. Watch where you're going…" he muttered, clambering off whoever he'd fallen on. He looked down, and raised a brow in mild surprise.

It was a teenage boy, probably about the same age as him. He wore a store uniform, and was nursing his apparently injured chin. "Take your own advice, brat" the teen replied, a tone of clear irritation in his voice. The teen look up at Deidara, with resenting muddy brown eyes.

"Hey! It wasn't my fault un! And who're you callin' brat? We're the same age, and I'm a customer un!" Deidara ranted, pulling himself to his feet. His stomach and elbow both ached, and his knee was definitely going to bruise now. Great.

The teenager followed Deidara's movement, using a nearby crate of discounted rice to hoist himself up. He glared at Deidara, his blood red bangs covering his eyes slightly. "Whatever, _brat. _I came over here because my boss said it looked like you could use some help, but if you're going to crash into me and then yell at me, forget it" the teenager snarled.

"I don't need your freaking help, un! Go bug someone else, shitface!" Deidara shouted, clenching his fist. He ordinarily would never go this far in an argument, let alone swear, but he felt he just couldn't stop yelling at this _goddamn ginger _when he was so pent up. Letting all out, felt really really good…

"Fine, brat. Welcome to the freaking neighborhood" Sasori spat, before turning sharply on his heel and storming away. Deidara glared at him as he left, gripping his shopping cart ruthlessly.

"Fucking bastard, un. Calling me brat…" Deidara grumbled to himself, shoving his cart in a random direct and striding away, before he finally parked himself in the pastry aisle. He looked around for a moment, slightly dazedly. "Now… where's the dairy aisle again…?"

-x-

Deidara strode down the hallway of his floor in the apartment, haphazardly balancing over a dozen grocery bags at once. A different, much _nicer _employee from the store (though he had blue hair…) had helped the blonde carry his groceries to the apartment, giving Deidara only a short trip upstairs to his and Naruto's apartment.

The blonde stopped dead in his tracks, blinking confusedly at the sight a few yards away from him, in front of his apartment door.

Naruto stood, leant casually against the frame of their door, laughing animatedly at something the stranger across from him had apparently said. The stranger in question appeared to be about Naruto's age, with raven hair and a somewhat scene attire of the clothing. Deidara raised an eyebrow.

"Hey, Nii-san!" he called out. Naruto, along with the stranger, turned their heads to Deidara, and a smile broke out onto Naruto's face. "Dei!" he said happily, pushing himself off the doorframe and walking to his older sibling. Deidara blinked. "_Laughing… smiling… What?" _he thought.

He took several of the rather heavy grocery bags from the fellow blonde, still smiling warmly. "This" he said, motioning to the raven-haired teenager with a jerk of the head, "is Sasuke Uchiha, one of our neighbors. He lives here with his brothers, a senior and a junior like you!" Naruto explained. Uchiha nodded stiffly.

"Good afternoon, can I help with those bags?" he said, as Deidara was still struggling to balance the remaining half a dozen or so. "Um, no, un. But you can open our door for us, its unlocked right Nii-san?" Deidara said, shifting one of the particularly heavy bags on his chest.

"Yeah, it is. Thanks for offering Sasuke-kun" Naruto said, and Deidara watched with curiosity as his younger sibling's face flushed red. Sasuke walked carefully down the hallway, and pushed their door open. Naruto walked in first, then Deidara, then finally Sasuke; who closed the door.

Naruto stumbled over his own two feet to make it into the kitchen, where he clumsily dropped the groceries on the counter. Deidara groaned as he heaved them up, setting them down as well.

"Would you two like my help putting things away or…?" Sasuke questioned, motioning to the bags before Naruto cut him off.

"Oh no Sasuke-kun, no need, me and Nii-san can handle it. Thank you for the offer though, and for opening the door, really you've done enough, you're so nice and-" Deidara rolled his eyes at what had once been his sibling's typical behavior, and simply leant against the counter till Naruto had ushered the raven-haired teen out.

Naruto all but slammed the door, then whipped around and pressed his back to the door. Deidara smirked at his crimson-faced younger brother, and spoke in a rather amused tone: "Well un. Someone's got a crush".

The younger blonde glared at his sibling, pushing himself off the door and storming into the kitchen. "I" he stated, as he plucked a box at random from the groceries, "do NOT". He shoved it in the refrigerator and slammed it shut. He swung around and faced Deidara, cerulean eye wild with energy.

Deidara smirked at his sibling, pushing himself off the counter and waltzing into the kitchen. "Oh? You don't?" he questioned, watching as Naruto feverishly shoved groceries into cupboards at random. "Uh huh" the blonde answered.

"If you don't like him…" Deidara said, walking his fingertips across the countertop. "Then why'd you just put a box of macaroni in the fridge and the frozen chicken in the silverware drawer?" he asked, and smirked when his younger sibling's face lit aflame.

Naruto hastily snatched the said items and set them on the counter, before facing his brother with a blushing smile.

-x-

"-and then, he beat all the arcade's shooting games, just for me!"

Deidara rolled his eyes as his younger brother gushed, closing the cabinet's door as he tidied up the last of their purchases. The blonde could hardly believe his sibling, who'd successfully chattered on about his new raven-haired knight in shining armor the entire time they'd put groceries away.

"Yeah, un" Deidara said, leaning against the counter. "Uchiha's perfect, I get it" he said, smirking. Naruto glared at his sibling, before letting the expression fade. "Yeah well, what about you? You mentioned some guy from the market" Naruto said.

Deidara felt his blood nearly boil at the mentioning of that red haired _bastard, _and he scowled. "He's an asshole, un. Sexy as hell, but an asshole" he said, and Naruto smirked at his sibling's words. "I gotta make dinner, why don't you elaborate while I cook?" he asked.

Naruto picked up a box of pasta, reading it absentmindedly while listening to his brother rant. "-and he STILL called me a brat, un! Fuckin' bastard I tell ya. After that I just found some other dude to help me, he was nice, named Kigali or something un…"

Deidara paused so suck a breath in through his teeth, leaning his stomach against the counter. He watched for a moment as Naruto continued cooking, humming to himself as he stirred the now pasta-filled hot water.

"I think you're taking your anger out on this Sasori guy, Nii-san".

Deidara blinked, once, twice, three times. His younger sibling had tossed the comment out there so casually, it didn't even sound like it held the emotions it did. After a hollow few moments of silence, Deidara spoke. "…What, un?" he stared at the back of his brother's head, boring imaginary holes into it.

Naruto paused his stirring, setting the wooden spoon down and slowly turning around. He locked eyes with his older brother, his bright cerulean mixing in Deidara's slightly darker azure."Nii-san…" he said softly.

"You took your anger out on that Sasori guy… He might've been a bit of a jerk, but I think if he was it was just in response to what _you_ did" Naruto said, his voice gentle and calm. Deidara scoffed, crossing his arms. "Yeah, un? What could I have to be angry about, hm?" he said, in a harsh tone that contradicted his brother's.

Naruto looked his brother in the eyes, his eyes glossy with what might've been unshed tears. "You can't pretend you're already over them, Nii-san" he said quietly.

Deidara's anger caught his throat, roughly choking him up. He made a clogged noise in his gullet, as it became congested. A tear spilt from Deidara's eyes, and the blonde slowly crumpled in his seat, covering his face with his hands as sobs began to rack his body.

Naruto slowly approached his older sibling, and placed a hand on his brother's back. He ran his hand up and down Deidara's back in a comforting manner, speaking with a fragile voice as the sight of his sibling made him cheerless as well.

"I-it's o-okay, Nii-san…" Naruto said, coughing slightly as it became harder to breathe. He brought a hand up to his face, wiping freed tears off his face. "I-it's going t-to be f-fine…" he cried, burying his face in his brother's chest as Deidara took him into a hug.

"I miss them so much…" Naruto sobbed, staining his brother's shirt as he pressed his face against the warm fabric of Deidara's jacket. It was Deidara who was comforting now, hugging his sibling tightly with him sitting in his lap. (An easy feat, seeing as Naruto was light as a feather).

"C'mon now. I'm sorry for reminding you, un. Let's just eat dinner ok?" Deidara murmured, his mouth muffled by Naruto's head of light blonde hair. The younger teenager sniffed loudly, but nonetheless pulled away. Deidara looked on sadly as Naruto wiped his face, using a nearby box of tissues to blow his noise.

Naruto looked at his used tissue, smirking weakly. "Oh, now isn't that just the most _gorgeous _sight" he said sarcastically. Deidara laughed, and hoisting his younger brother gently off his lap. "C'mon un, we can watch an episode of 'The Mentalist' after dinner" Deidara said. Naruto looked at his brother with a smile, the brightness of his eyes returning. "And have ice cream?" he asked.

Deidara laughed, and nodded blissfully.

-x-

So a bit shorter than last time yes, but much more eventful! We got to meet two new characters, and hear mentioning of a couple more! I know you might think that the whole crying scene in this chapter was over the top, but as someone who's suffered a loss like that, I can tell you that even the slightest mentioning can cause tears. XD

Please R&R, and flames will be used to heat up Deidara and Sasori's love. XD


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or anything associated. The characters, setting, plot, etc, belong to Masashi Kishimoto.

Back, once again! Oh god, I feel freakin' awful… I took so long I made it off the first page! XD I got snowed in, so when I haven't been sleeping, studying, spooning with my girlfriend or watching _Glee,_ I've been working on this. Oh well, I hope the fact that this chapter is impossibly long makes up for it. As always enjoy, and R&R if you want more.

-x-

Deidara stirred in his sleep, his subconscious quavering on the boundary between awake and asleep. He slowly, slowly, opened his eyes, his eyelids fluttering like butterflies as they adjusted to the dim light of his bedroom.

When he was finally adjusted, Deidara simply laid in bed, listening to the hum of the shower that'd woke him up. With a loud sigh, the blonde hauled himself up and sat on the mattress. "_If Nii-san's showering, I probably should too un…_" he mused, standing and heading for the unoccupied shower after grabbing an outfit at random.

Deidara climbed into the shower, his feet touching the cool, white basin of the bathtub. He sighed loudly, before turning the handle and spraying a scattering of warm water over his body.

-x-

Deidara vigorously rubbed his towel through his soaked blonde locks, rubbing the fluffy white material through his hair until it was nearly completely dry. Then Deidara took the same towel and wiped down his mirror, watching with amusement as the fog that'd collected was smeared away.

The blonde smiled. "_Damn, un"_ he thought amusedly, "_I guess even when I'm brain dead tired I can find clothes that look good on me, un"._

Deidara was clad in a slightly baggy, bright blue shirt, with a black gaunt dragon decorating its front. Atop that he'd thrown on a black hoodie, unzipped, that donned a pale gray skeleton on its fabric. Along with that the blonde had chosen a white studded belt, a pair of black jeans, and blue converses.

The newly bathed blonde entered the kitchen, and was greeted by a pleasant scent of syrup and sugar. He smiled brightly at his younger brother, whom was busying himself cooking breakfast. "Heyo Nii-san" he greeted.

Naruto was well-dressed as well, in a baggy white hoodie with a blue Hawaiian pattern, on top of a simple orange shirt with a black Halloween theme, holey black jeans and red converses.

"Morning Nii-san" Naruto said brightly, smiling over his shoulder. "I made pancakes" he said. As proof of point Naruto proceeded to pull a large plate of them off the counter, and plunked into down in front of his older brother. Deidara grinned, and eyed the meal ravenously.

"Thanks, un" Deidara said, attacking the meal. Naruto smiled as he set a glass of orange juice and bacon next to his brother, and then sat down to devour his own breakfast.

-x-

Deidara washed the remaining residue of his and his brother's breakfast off the shiny ceramic apartment plates, his hands wet from the sink. He turned and looked at Naruto, whom was putting away the supplies used to make their meal, before quickly rinsing off his hands.

"Ready, un?" Deidara questioned, smiling at his brother. He plucked their bags off the carpeted floor, handing Naruto his messenger's bag before securing his own book bag on his shoulder. Naruto smiled. "Yeah, but there's something I forgot to tell y-"

The brother's eyes were drawn instantaneously to the door, as the tuneful chime of their doorbell resounded throughout the apartment. Deidara watched without amusement as his younger brother slowly walked to the door, and opened it.

It revealed to them four new characters, and Deidara wanted to face palm. The ever confident Uchiha stood in the doorway, smiling in a self-satisfied way with three other teenagers. One of them was probably a bit older than Deidara, a rather tall teenager with long raven hair pulled into a ponytail. Next to him was another about the same age as Deidara, a goofy-faced teenager with a head of black hair and red eyes, though one was scarred by a large dark red gash.

And the last teen… Deidara raised a brow of surprise, and looked back to Naruto, then the teen. "Uh… Aren't you…?"

The teenager gave a hoarse laugh, running a broad hand through his brilliant blue hair. "Hey hey" he said, chuckling and shaking the older teenager's shoulder, "Itachi, you didn't tell me that I'd already met the kid!"

"I wasn't aware" the teen replied, his voice dull and uninterested as he moved his hand to brush a bit of hair away from his eyes. They were a bloody red, Deidara noticed, with a long black line underneath them on both sides of his face.

"Nii-san, how do you know him?" Naruto asked, looking at Deidara curiously. "He's the guy that helped me at the market, un. But never mind that, un, why're you here?" he asked the teen.

Kisame smiled, revealing a mouth full of rather jagged teeth, and grabbed hold of the one called 'Itachi'. "Me 'n Itachi here are tight, y'know?" he laughed again, a loud raspy chuckle.

It was at this time that Uchiha, Sasuke that is, (hell it's too confusing to have more than one Uchiha, he's officially Sasuke), spoke. "Good morning Naruto, Deidara. Kisame, as you apparently already know, is my older brother, Itachi here's boyfriend. And that's Tobi".

Deidara followed the raven-haired teenager's gaze to the last teen, and his eyes widened. The one called Tobi had evidently lost interest in the rest of them, and was now having an animated conversation with a potted plant.

Sasuke sighed impatiently. "Nii-san, come here and introduce yourself" he called. The teen's head lurched up at his brother's callings, and a smile crept onto his face. He bounced over to the crowd, his plant friend forgotten.

"Hello, I'm Tobi! Tobi is a good boy!" he exclaimed, and Deidara blinked in surprise at the boy's lively behavior. Sasuke sighed again, rolling his eyes. Naruto coughed lightly, drawing eyes.

"So" he said, a smile reaching his face. "Shall we go then?"

-x-

Deidara blinked as, for the fourth time, Tobi leapt into traffic. A scowling, swearing Sasuke dragged him back into line, and the group continued.

"So, un" Deidara said, his eyes traveling his new surroundings as they walked. "What grades are you all in? I'm a junior, Naruto's a freshman".

"I'm a freshman as well, and Tobi's a junior. Itachi and Kisame are both seniors" Sasuke said, adjusting his bag and grabbing Tobi by the hood as he tried to run off and talk to a fire hydrant. "So you and Tobi have classes together" Naruto said.

"Not necessarily. And you two could very well have classes with any one of us. The grade classes' are typically mixed" Itachi commented, something that Deidara had observed was rather rare. "Interesting, un…" he said, mostly to himself.

"We're almost here" Sasuke commented, drawing Deidara's eyes upwards. His gaze remained, as he looked at the approaching building. It was rather large, with dark burgundy brick walls and a silver roof. The group soon passed a small silver sign, which boldly read: "AMEGAKURE PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL". Deidara and Naruto's new home was in the small town of Amegakure, a semi-urbanized area outside of the city of Konoha.

Deidara and the others' stopped their trek shortly before the school's entrance, in which small streams of students were entering. Deidara turned to Naruto. "Seeya Nii-san" he said, smiling as he looked slightly down. Naruto pouted, and captured his older brother in a hug.

"I'll miss you!" he cried dramatically, burying his face in his brother's chest. Deidara laughed, hugging back. "I'll miss you too, un. I promise I'll look for you at lunch un, and meet you to walk home. Ok?" he coaxed, running his fingers through his brother's soft blonde hair. Naruto reluctantly pulled away, and smiled softly. "Ok, see you later Nii-san. Love you" Naruto walked with Sasuke through the double doors, and Deidara called out "love you!" just before they disappeared.

Deidara turned around, and found that only Tobi remained. He grimaced.

"Ok Tobi, un… Can you show me where our classes are?" Tobi's face lit up, and he grinned brightly. "Yes Tobi can Deidara-sempai, Tobi's a good boy!" and with that proclamation, Tobi took the blonde by the wrist and dragged him into the school.

Deidara sighed heavily, melting into his seat. He ran a hand through his hair, and stretched. He looked down at his schedule, eyeing it. "Homeroom with Mr. Umino… First period Math with Ms. Yuuhi, un… Second Period Geography with Mr. Umino again, Lockers, Third period Language Arts with Mr. Hatake, un, and then Fourth period".

The blonde also had three electives, Theatre, German and Health. He only had two a day however, with Health switching out with German each day. He also had lunch with his first elective, Theatre.

Deidara's eyes were curiously drawn upwards to where Tobi stood. The hyperactive teen was talking animatedly with a senior, smiling and laughing. Deidara couldn't help but raise a brow at the other teen. He was rather tall, and had a head of brilliant green hair. The teen raised a hand, and gently ran his fingers across the side of Tobi's face.

Without warning Tobi suddenly leapt forward, practically pinning the green-haired teenager to the wall. Deidara's jaw nearly dropped as the two began to _make out_, and he forced himself to look away.

"Jesus un…" Deidara muttered to himself, sinking lower in his seat. After a moment Deidara pulled a sketchpad out of his bag, and sketched for the rest of the homeroom period.

-x-

Deidara clenching his bag's strap in his hand, his knuckles popping. He bit his lower lip nervously as he strode into his first class period, and plunked down into a seat at random. He looked up and watched as other students walked into the class, until finally the bell rang and the teacher stood.

She was a tall, curvaceous woman, with a head of long dark silver hair, and red eyes. She held in her hands what Deidara assumed was an attendance clipboard, and after a moment, she looked up and scanned the room.

"Ah! We have a new student!" she said, her eyes zeroing in on Deidara. "If you would, please stand up and introduce yourself to the class" she said. Deidara swallowed nervously.

The blonde stood, cringing as he felt every eye in the room on him. He cleared his throat, facing the class. "My name is Deidara Iwa, un. I like sculpting and acting and hanging out with my brother, un" he said. He stood in solid silence for a good ten seconds, before the teacher cleared her throat.

"Ok, thank you Mr. Iwa, you may sit down now. Ok, so today we're learning abou-"

-x-

"You may work on the homework in groups of two to four until the bell rings".

Deidara let out a loud sigh, sitting up and looking down at his homework. Math. Oh how he hated math, despised math, absolutely could not _stand _the atrocious subject that he was forced to learn that was MATH.

He was interrupted by his thoughts however, by a calm, collected voice. He looked up. "Hey" the voice repeated. Its owner was teenage girl, one with multiple piercings and bright blue hair pulled into a bun by a white rose. "_Jesus"_ Deidara thought to himself, "_what's with all the dyed hair here?_"

"Hi" he said; trying to keep his voice calm. The girl smiled at him, and an orange haired teen with even _more _piercings stood next to her. "I'm Konan, this is my boyfriend Pein. Can we work with you?"

Deidara, relatively surprised but pleasantly so, nodded. The girl and the boy both pulled up desks, joining the blonde.

"So" Deidara said, looking at the two. The girl called Konan had a pair of absolutely mesmerizing copper colored eyes, and she stared intently at him with her head resting on her hand.

"Where do you live?" she asked casually, and Deidara swallowed. "In the apartment next to the coffee shop. You know, down the street, un" he said. The girl nodded, and the one called Pein spoke. "That's the same apartment as our friend Itachi and his brothers. Have you met them yet?" Deidara nodded.

"Yeah, un. My brother met the Sasuke guy and made friends with him. We walked to school with them today, un" Konan and Pein both nodded, appearing interested. "Hm. Well that's nice, you should sit with us at lunch today Deidara" Konan said. Deidara smiled, relieved at the chance to make friends. Konan seemed nice and Pein nice enough, so who knew?

"Ok, un" Deidara said. He looked down at his homework for a moment, grimacing at the sight of the seemingly impossible to solve equations. Konan, seeming to notice his distress, gave a light laugh.

"Need help?" she asked, and Deidara laughed as well. "Yeah, un" he said. Pein spoke up. "You know, we have a friend in this class who's really good at math that might be willing to help you" he said, and Deidara smiled brightly.

"Okay, un" he said. He watched as Pein scooted his seat around, and Deidara followed his gaze to the apparently mathematically skilled student. The blonde's eyes widened.

Only one thought ran through Deidara's mind as he saw him, his mop of bloody red hair, his pale face, and his muddy, sleep-filled eyes. Aw, SHIT.

"_Shit shit shit SHIT. How did I not notice him? Bloody jerk was probably sleeping, so I didn't see him! Damn it". _Deidara watched with nervous anticipation as Pein got the red-head's attention, and explained the situation. Sasori nodded, and turned to see Deidara. The blonde cringed as his expression changed to one of anger, and the red head spoke.

"Aw, what? THAT'S the new kid? I already know him, hell no" he said, and promptly laid his head back down on the desk. Deidara felt a muscle in his mouth twitch, and he practically sweat dropped. Konan stared at him with interest. "How do you know Sasori Deidara?" she questioned.

"I uh… ran into him at the market, un… I was kind of a jerk to him…" Deidara sighed loudly, feeling a headache coming on. After dinner, though Deidara had thought he'd let it go, Naruto brought Sasori up again, and insisted that Deidara apologize if he saw him.

"_And here he is_…" Deidara thought with displeasure. "Uh… Sasori, un?" he asked timidly, twisting his jacket sleeve in his hands. He held his lower lip between his teeth as Sasori slowly sat up, rubbed his eyes, and glared at him.

"Yes, _brat?_" he asked icily. Deidara swallowed, and sighed. "I-I'm sorry I shouted at you at the market un… I was angry about something else; you didn't deserve what I said…"

Sasori's muddy brown eyes were seeped by surprise, and he looked at Deidara with his head slightly cocked to the side. After a few seconds of tense silence, he sighed, ran a hand through his unruly red hair, and spoke.

"It's fine, _Deidara._ It might not have been my fault that you fell, but I could've been a bit nicer as well". Deidara smiled brightly at the red head's word, feeling his body flood with relief. Sasori cracked a smile, and Deidara felt unfamiliar warmth in the pit of his stomach. "So, need some help with that math?"

After the blonde scooted his desk up against Sasori's, the red head began his teachings. He pointed to the first equation with the tip of his pencil, tapping loosely on the paper. "Ok, this isn't that hard Deidara. This is trigonometry, which is basically just a branch of math where you look at triangles, and the relationships between their sides and the angles between the sides. Now, when y-"

-x-

"Ok un…" Deidara said, penciling in his final answer, "so given the radians, the answer is Ac = A + k*(2 PI)?" the blonde asked, wringing his sleeve in his hands nervously as Sasori checked over his work. Slowly a soft smile crept onto the redhead's face, and Sasori nodded.

A grin plastered itself onto Deidara's face, and he pumped his fist victoriously. "Yeah, un!" he cheered, earning a chuckle from Sasori. The two slipped their papers away, only to see that they still had a few minutes of class left.

Sasori rested his head in his hand, his muddy brown eyes studying the blonde curiously. After a moment or so, he spoke. "So Deidara" he said, "if you don't mind me asking, do you like art of any kind?"

Deidara looked up from the desktop, and his azure eyes lit up. "Yeah, un! I love art, art is a bang!" he said enthusiastically. Sasori raised a brow at this statement. "A bang? Hn, care to elaborate?"

Deidara smiled brightly, and spoke. "Art, art is fleeting un. It's a quick moment of intense dazzling beauty, that's short-lived and disappears nearly the moment it's formed. Leaving any and all who saw it to have the sight imprinted on their brains, forever wishing they could see more".

Satisfied with his explanation, Deidara leant back in his chair, still smiling. Thus, he was caught completely off guard by what Sasori did next.

"Wrong" he said. Deidara's eyes widened, and he blinked in surprise. "Excuse me, un?" he asked confusedly. Sasori sighed in an irritated way, running a hand through his unruly blood-colored hair. "That's all nice and poetic sounding, but completely and utterly wrong. God, and here I was starting to think you had a brain in your head…"

The blonde looked at him with disbelief. "Excuse me, un! What's your idea of art, hm? Why're _you _so cocky?" he said, anger beginning to seep into his mind.

Sasori locked eyes with Deidara, his muddy irises gleaming with a strange determination and confidence. "Art" he said, speaking in a calm, collected tone, "is everlasting, eternal. Never fading or dying out, true art lasts lifetimes, staying in the minds of it's' viewers forever, giving them perpetual respect and admiration for the piece".

Deidara glared at Sasori, his eyes an angry azure. "That's ridiculous, un. You just said the exact opposite of what I did!" he spat. Sasori chuckled, an amused smirk on his face. "That just shows how wrong you are about true art, _brat_".

"God Sasori, I thought I was wrong about you un. I thought that I'd let my temper get the better of me when we first met, and that you were actually nice, un. But no, oh _hell _no! As it turns out I was right, you _are _an asshole!" Deidara nearly shouted. Sasori's expression formed one of a scowl, and the two glared at each other.

A long moment of silence passed before the bell for their next class finally rang. Deidara slammed his palms on the desk, and swiftly rose to his feet. Sasori followed his movement, and they were suddenly eye level.

Boiling mud brown fought blazing azure blue, and the two glared furiously at each other. "Thanks _brat._ Seeya around" Sasori spat, and promptly strode away. Deidara quickly gathered his things together and left the classroom, absolutely _seething _as he stormed to second period. He plunked ungracefully into a seat at random, and glared daggers into his desk.

"Sempai?"

Deidara looked up to see a familiar face, slightly startled by the boy's concerned face. Tobi pouted at the blonde, and spoke. "Sempai, why're you all angry looking? Did Tobi do something wrong?"

Deidara sighed loudly, running a hand through his hair. "No, no Tobi not at all. I take it you have this class?" he asked. Tobi nodded brightly.

Uh huh, and Zetsu-kun has this class too! Isn't that great sempai?" Horror flooded Deidara's face as Tobi reached and enthusiastically flung the arm of someone else up, that arm belonging to the green haired senior Deidara had seen earlier.

Seeing Deidara's expression Tobi pouted once more, wrapping his arms around the green-haired teenager. "Sempai doesn't like Zetsu?" he asked. Deidara caught the yellow-eyed glare of the one called Zetsu, and vigorously shook his head no.

"S-sorry Tobi un, no I do like Z-Zetsu, I do!" Deidara said. And like the bipolar boy he is, a bright smile reached Tobi's face almost instantaneously, and he skipped happily to the seat on Deidara's right. "Ok sempai! Whatever you say!" he sang happily, and Zetsu walked to seat next to Tobi. Deidara sighed loudly.

"_Jesus…" _he thought to himself, hiding his face behind his hand. "_This school's going to be the death of me, I swear…". _And with that thought, Deidara turned his attention to the teacher.

-x-

Deidara listened absentmindedly to Tobi's ramblings, preoccupied with switching out his books. Though the teen was a pain, Deidara knew without Tobi he'd be lost as hell in the massive school.

"-and then the unicorns blew up the monster with lasers!" Deidara sweat dropped at the boy's story, sighing to himself. "Ok Tobi un, I have Language Arts next. Think you could lead me there?" Tobi replied with much enthusiasm, dragging Deidara through the halls and nearly throwing him into his next class. All Deidara heard was a faint call of "bye sempai!" before the black-haired boy disappeared again.

With a chuckle and a shake of the head, Deidara headed for a free seat. He pulled out his binder and a few pens, inattentively doodling on the corner of his binder.

The blonde's attention was soon earned however, by a pale skinned boy with silver hair. The boy laughed obnoxiously and plunked down into the seat directly next to Deidara's left, and dropped his backpack with a heavy clatter.

Deidara watched the albino teenager timidly, his pencil still in his hand. A towering teenager with tanned brown skin and greasy black hair walked into the room, and sat on the other side of Deidara. "_Oh great_…" Deidara thought to himself.

The silver haired teen's attention was soon drawn to Deidara, and he smirked. "Heyo, new shrimp. What's your name?" he asked; his voice rather loud and arrogant sounding. Deidara inwardly cringed at yet another crappy nickname.

"Deidara Iwa, un" the blonde replied, turning and making eye contact with the teen. He had a pair of startling pale pink eyes, and they held a glossy sheen of confidence.

"Cool" he said, slouching lazily in his chair. "My name's Hidan. The shitfaced Mr. Serious on your right is Kakuzu, my fucking boyfriend" he said, pointing to the teenager next to Deidara. The blonde turned to him and nodded, and the teen nodded back.

"Hm. You seem alright Deidara fucker, we should hang out. Sit with me 'n my crew at lunch, you won't regret it" Hidan said, and laughed loudly again. Deidara swallowed uncomfortably.

"Um, I told some other people I'd sit with them though, un…" he said nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. And, as predicted, a sudden flash of anger passed through Hidan's pink eyes, and demanded: "who're the fuckers?"

Deidara cringed. "_I don't really wanna see Hidan murder Konan with a spork…_" he thought to himself. "U-um, Konan and Pein un…" he said timidly. Hidan's expression of anger suddenly melted away, and a big grin plastered itself onto his face. He leaned back in his chair again, laughing.

"Ah, those fuckers. Konan and Pein are my buddies, dumbass. Though I guess you couldn't have known that… Eh, fuck whatever. Point is, you're sitting with me and Pein and all the rest; got it fucker?" Hidan said. He looked Deidara in the eye, his pink irises expectant.

"Uh, y-yeah un. I'll be there…" Deidara said, smiling weakly. Hidan grinned, and laughed loudly again.

-x-

Deidara strode through the crowds, weaving in and out of various streams of students. He cringed as some pushed him out of the way, effectively slamming him into a locker. "Ouch, un" Deidara groaned, nursing his now throbbing shoulder.

He glared at the passing stream of students, leaning against the lockers as he cradled his arm. "_Damn it, first Sasori bruises me up, now I gotta deal with this too?_" the blonde's thought were true however; when he'd showered that morning he did in fact have a few bruises from his first encounter with the red head. Speaking of which…

"Get off my locker, _brat"_ a voice said icily. Deidara glanced up, and an instant glare reached his face at the sight of who'd spoke. Sasori stood with an irritated face, clenching his bag's strap in his hand.

"Ask nicely and maybe I will; shitface" Deidara spat back, deliberately pressing his back against the cold metal of the locker. Sasori glared daggers into the teen, and took a step forward. Deidara stared at him in a challenging way, a cold smirk on his lips. Sasori was just about to raise a fist, when it happened.

In a silvery flash Hidan appeared out of nowhere, swooping in front of his red haired friend and flinging an arm around his shoulder. "Hey Puppet Fucker, why don't we just head to class now?" Hidan asked, followed by a breathy, nervous laugh. He quickly shoved the red head in the other direction, _away _from Deidara, who was preoccupied himself.

"Hey, uh, h-hey sempai! Why don't you show Tobi your schedule, so Tobi can show you where your class is, cause Tobi's a good boy!" the black-haired boy chattered speedily, even for him. Deidara raised a brow at the Uchiha's rather suspicious behavior, but nonetheless pulled out his schedule and showed it to him.

"Theatre Arts? Yay! Sempai has class with Tobi and the rest of the Akatsuki!" Tobi grabbed Deidara by the wrist and began to drag him away, but the blonde skidded them to a stop. "Wait, what un? What's Akatsuki?" he asked. Tobi turned around, and smiled brightly.

"Akatsuki is sempai's new friends!" Tobi said enthusiastically. "Konan-chan and Pein-sempai are the leader people, you know? And then there's Zetsu-kun, Nii-sama (Itachi), Kisame-sempai, Kakuzu-sempai, Hidan-san, and Sasori-sempai!"

Deidara felt his blood run cold.

"What…? What, un? Could you repeat that last part again?" he said, his voice cold and calm. Tobi blinked confusedly, but nonetheless replied: "Sasori-sempai. Doesn't sempai know that?" Deidara, trying to ignore to absolute rage that was beginning to pump through his veins, shook his head vigorously. "Yeah, sorry Tobi, never mind. Let's just go to class ok un? The bell's nearly rung".

Deidara smiled and rolled his eyes as Tobi enthusiastically agreed, dragging the blonde through the massive school building to their next class.

-x-

Deidara sighed loudly, stretching his arms and listening to the pops of his back. He yawned, leaning back in his seat.

He'd been more than mildly surprised by his new classroom.

There were none of the usual small, crappy wooden school desks with crude drawings of penises or hard dark blue plastic chairs to decorate this room. The only tables in the room were massive, splintery wooden work tables, covered in sawdust and power tools. For chairs there was a wide assortment of seats, varying from black overturned buckets to cardboard boxes, some sitting on the floor or on bean bag chairs.

But the strangest thing of all was the stage. It was black and wooden and about four feet tall, with two sets of stainless steel stairs to get onto it. Normal, yes?

However it'd been decorated with a hodgepodge collaboration of props, all of which didn't seem to go together. A beaten up coat rack with a Rapunzel wig and a conman coat hanging off it. A cushy maroon armchair was at the center of the stage, and it was practically ripped apart, stuffing leaking from it like marshmallow innards. To the side of that was a wooden stool, which was seated in the middle of a large plastic kiddie pool full of water and floating rubber ducks. Along with that were many other things, trombones and stereos and paint cans.

Needless to say, Deidara found his new classroom more than a touch odd.

"_Sweet zombie Jesus…_" he thought to himself, shifting uncomfortably on his rainbow bean bag, "_this place really is run by crack heads!_"

The school bell rang loudly in the class's ears, echoing off the spacious room's walls like a pinball machine. Deidara cringed and, whilst too busy jamming a finger in his ear; did not notice his new drama teacher make their entrance.

"Good afternoon, maggots!" a loud, booming and ever confident voice shouted. Deidara's eyes flashed up, and widened at the sight of his teacher.

She was clad in a rather scanty fishnet top, under a long cream colored trench coat that just screamed 'lethal'. Her skirt was far too short to be appropriate, and she had a head of purple hair, apparently a dye-addict like most of her students.

Her face formed a scowl, evidently unsatisfied with her students' response. "I said" she spoke, placing a foot on an overturned cardboard box. "GOOD AFTERNOON, YOU SHITTY MAGGOTS!" the cardboard crumpled like tissue under her merciless combat boot, and the whole class jumped in surprise.

"GOOD AFTERNOON MS. MITARASHI!"

The woman's face contorted to an expression of a cackling grin, and she kicked the crushed material across the room. "Stupid maggots…" she said with a smirk, before turning and climbing onto the stage. She wiped her hands on her coat, and then looked out at her class with a grin.

"Afternoon kiddos. Sorry for any pissed pants in the room, I simply wanted to give our two new students a good feeling of how thing work in this class" she said, causing Deidara's blood to run cold. The woman seemed to catch this, her eyes locking on Deidara's terrified face and smirk on her lips.

"Mr. Iwa… And your brother, would you two come up here and introduce yourselves?" she spoke in a calm, malicious voice, a cackling laugh filling the room. The blonde swallowed, his throat dry, and stood from his idiotic seat. Naruto followed his sibling's lead, his face clearly red.

The two stood in the center of the large stage, awkwardly corralled in place like mules. Deidara swallowed and rubbed his neck, deciding to speak before his brother. "Hello, un. My name's Deidara Iwa, un, and this is my younger brother Naruto. I already know most of you in here but… un" the blonde laughed nervously and reached down and held his brother's quavering hand.

Silence was present in the room. Ms. Mitarashi eyed them curiously, leant against the wall. Finally she ran a hand through her ponytailed hair, and spoke. "Alright, thanks Blondie, time for class to begin". Deidara leapt from the stage, his brother's cold clammy palm in hand, and scurried back to his seat.

Ms. Mitarashi cleared her throat, stepping in a smooth way through the messy array of objects on her stage. Finally she made her way to the large, torn maroon chair in the center, and plopped into it.

"Who" she said, her word calm and clicking. "Has ever heard of putting a twist on an original play?" About two thirds of the class' hands went up, and she pointed one of them out. "Barbie girl, gimme a definition and an example" a smirk crept onto the teacher's face at her words, and she stared at the girl she'd selected.

The girl, a pale teenager with long blonde hair tied in a ponytail and clad in far too tight clothing, spoke. "It's a classic theatre production, like Macbeth or something, and then you throw a twist into to make it more interesting. Like making Juliet a zombie from Romeo and Juliet".

Their eccentric teacher nodded, reaching over the arm of her cushy chair and plucking an old ratty cane from the coat rack. "Precisely" she said, sitting up. "And that ties into our new spring production!" she slid wooden box near her feet with the cane, and plopped a top hat onto her head. "A twisted angst-filled romanticized version of…"

"ALICE IN WONDERLAND!"

An eruption of cheers and whoops filled the air, everyone clapping. Ms. Mitarashi grinned toothily at their response, shifting her hat on her head. "Okay maggots, scripts are over there. Everyone grab one and read it over it. Find your part! Auditions next Monday morning and Tuesday evening"

-x-

(A/N): Holy shit on a birthday cake, this chapter was long. But that's a good thing, I hope? Haha, R&R if you enjoyed it, thanks for the love last chapter too.

Any flame reviews will be printed out, made into toilet paper, and sent to an obese man with diarrhea.


	4. Chapter 4

(A/N): … *walks onto stage, preparing to pelted by rotten tomatoes* Agh, sorry, I've taken, no joke, MONTHS to update this story. I know, I know, I'm horrible. I hope you all can still take the time review and haven't abandoned me, because I really am going to keep going with this story. I'm adding two chapters in a row to try and woo you all back.

Please enjoy, R/R, and so on.

I do not own any part of the anime/manga Naruto, it all belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

-x-

Deidara sat on the apartment's tan sofa, cradling his Social Studies textbook in his lap under a blanket. He was warm and happy, content as a low volume rerun of '_NCIS_' played on the television screen. He yawned loudly, shifting his position.

It was Tuesday evening; around 6 PM. Theatre was proving to be an interesting class with their new teacher, and progress on the play was moving quickly. They'd spent all of Monday reading the script and blocking the parts that had the role you wanted to be in, and on Tuesday their teacher made them watch the most recent movie version of the production. Deidara was excited.

But then there was, of course, Akatsuki. Deidara liked them for the most part, able to balance Hidan's craziness with Zetsu's scariness and so on. The only problem was Sasori.

A scowl reached Deidara's face at just the thought of the red head, and his fingers curled into a fist. "_That bastard…_" he thought to himself. Lunch with Akatsuki was proving to be a living hell, as Deidara had somehow been crammed next to Sasori. Naruto wasn't even sitting at their same _table_, so ignoring the arrogant red-haired bastard had been quite a challenge.

A sudden vibrating in Deidara's pocket broke him from his thought however, and he shoved his hand into his pocket to retrieve his buzzing cell phone. A smile broke out onto his face at his lit up screen, and the message it displayed.

"_From: Hidan_

_Yo barbie boy, me n the rest of Akatsuki r hangin at Itachi's. U n ur bro get ur asses over here by 7 or else_.

_Sent from mobile at 6:14 PM 3/15/11"_

Deidara sent a quick message back in reply, smiling and pushing himself off the couch with glee. Sure he had homework, but it was easy for him, everything but math. Brushing his jeans of imaginary dirt, the blonde turned to knock on his sibling's door and deliver the news.

-x-

Anticipation brewed in Deidara's stomach, and the blonde swore he could taste his lunch in the back of his throat, threatening to come back up. He was freshly showered as Naruto had demanded, and his hair was let down, unlike its' usual loose ponytail, and it was still slightly damp, scented by his lemon shampoo.

Deidara was in an ever so slightly baggy black top, with neon blue graffiti on it as a design. His belt hung low on his hips, swaying in front of his black jeans. Along with that he was clad with a multitude of colored rubber bands on his wrists, and bright blue converses.

Naruto knocked on the door, taking the lead for once. They waited only a moment before the door swung open, and a wild eyed, grinning Hidan answered the door.

"Dei-fucker!" he cheered, ushering them in with a gigantic bag of Cheetos the one hand, the door in the other. He closed it ungraciously with a slam, and let the two blondes simply take in their surroundings.

The apartment was considerably larger than Deidara and Naruto's, considering it was meant to house four people at minimum. The spacious apartment had cream-colored carpets and dark blue walls, with a visible kitchen and living room. The living room smelled of popcorn and sugar, and had a large plasma screen and an endless selection of DVDS around it.

"Deidara-sempai!" a familiar voice cheered happily, and a smile reached Deidara's lips at the sound, and his eyes rose. "Hey Tobi, what's u-" his voice caught in his throat, and his eyes widened like saucers; bile raised in his throat.

Tobi was twisted to face Deidara, his knees facing the other direction. He was kneeled oddly on a lean-back chair, atop Zetsu. "Sempai?" Tobi questioned, his innocent crimson eyes shining. This, however, was not a feature Deidara noticed. No, no he was far more distracted by the drool hanging from the teenager's chin, and the red _bite marks _all over his neck.

Deidara shook his head vigorously, and sighed. "Hey Tobi" he said, before turning away from the two. Itachi was asleep on the sofa, leant against a chuckling Kisame. Kakuzu was perched on a cream colored loveseat alone, counting a thick wad of green bills and muttering to himself.

"Sasuke-kun, do you want me to help with anything?" Naruto asked the nearby raven-haired teen, causing Deidara to roll his eyes at his sibling. He chose to follow Hidan for entertainment, whom was in the midst of lugging a massive mattress out of someone's bedroom door frame.

"Agh, bastard mattress…" he growled as the bed jabbed him in the stomach, attempting to drag it farther. He twisted his torso around and, as he did so, caught view of Deidara.

"Fuck you Blondie! Why the hell are you just standing over there shitfaced? Help me!" Hidan roared, flailing the mattress aggressively. "S-sorry Hidan un!" Deidara sputtered, dashing to the albino's side and taking haul of the bed. The two worked together to drag the object, and eventually managed to settle it in the living room.

"Fuck yes! We own you, bitch bed!" Hidan cheered, stomping on the accursed object. Deidara simply rolled his eyes, and flopped down onto the mattress.

"So, what's the plan, un? And where's Konan and Pein?" Deidara questioned, sighing in a content way as Hidan plopped down beside him. Despite the zealot's vulgar speech habits, Deidara was finding that he and Konan were probably his favorites of his new group. At least life was interesting when in his presence.

Hidan yawned loudly, and stretched out over his newest blonde companion. "Those fuckers'll be here eventually. Probably fuckin' right now if my name ain't Hidan or some shit…" he said. Deidara's face flushed red, and he swatted at the albino's head.

"H-Hidan un, that's not very nice…" he said, rubbing his neck uncomfortably. Kakuzu, eyes never leaving his bills, muttered under his breath: "that's probably not far from the truth…" Kisame chuckled aloud, and Tobi giggled.

Deidara blushed lightly and rolled his eyes, pushing Hidan off of him. He stood up once more, looking around. Naruto was in the kitchen with, you guessed it, Sasuke, apparently making popcorn with the raven-haired freshman. Deidara raked a hand through his hair, his eyes roaming the room till a knocking on the door sounded.

"Ngh, yo Blondie, could you get that?" Hidan asked, rolling over on the mattress. Deidara chuckled but nonetheless headed for the door, and gripped its' cool golden handle in his fingers as he pulled it open.

"Heyo, un, glad you guys could ma-" Deidara's azure eye suddenly darkened at the sight of a certain someone, and his tone dropped drastically in happiness. "make it…" he said, moodily opening the door to its' full extension as the three teenagers at the door entered.

Konan and Pein entered with their arms linked, and Deidara had to admit; they both seemed a tad sweaty to have just walked in the cool March air. But it was who walked behind them, in his usual, slack, slouched way that caused Deidara's blood to boil. He'd known he was going to be here, obviously, but the blonde couldn't help but glare at the red haired teen.

"Hello Deidara, everyone" Konan said in her usual pleasant voice, breaking Deidara from his bloody fantasies of Sasori's demise. He watched the bluenette drag her boyfriend by the wrist to one of the many couches, and plop down. It was then that she spoke again, bringing up the plans for the rest of the night.

"So what's the verdict hm? I know you guys said we were watching a movie, but you didn't specify which" Konan said, as the apartment's residents slowly circled around the television.

Sasuke, whom had until then been occupied in the kitchen, spoke. "We've got some new Swedish horror film rented. Hidan and Kisame wanted blood, and a few of us are taking Swedish as our foreign language course this year"

The residents of the room seemed to agree with this logic, and everyone was corralled to a proper spot in the room. Most everyone was on a couch or loveseat of some sort, but Deidara, Naruto, Sasuke and, you guessed it, Sasori were all on the floor on the mattress.

Hidan flipped off the lights as the movie began, everyone silent in the echoing darkness. Deidara shifted on the mattress, throwing a blanket over him and leaning against the couch.

-x-

Deidara stared in complete horror at the screen, his azure eyes as wide as dinner plates. A blanket was cocooned around his torso and head, and he clung to himself in fear.

On screen a pale vampire girl is in the midst of devouring a human woman, whose screams fill the dark living room. A suddenly crash on screen catches Deidara off guard, and he releases a small screech while burying his face in his blanket.

Cowering, the blonde feels a dull weight press onto his back, and a familiar someone's amused whisper fills his ear. _"Not a fan of horror films, eh brat?"_ Sasori whispers cockily. Deidara felt his blood boil, and sat up abruptly.

"I'm going to make some more popcorn, un" he announces, pushing himself up and plucking an empty bowl off the floor. Everyone else, distracted by the film pays no mind. "Huh? Oh, yeah, sure Blondie…" Hidan said, clearly mesmerized by the violence occurring on screen.

The blonde stumbled into the kitchen, his bare feet brushing on the carpet and then the cold tiles of the kitchen floor. He pulled a bag of popcorn kernels from a drawer, and set about preparing the microwave. The dull pops of the kernels filling his ears, and he hummed to himself, turning around.

"SHIT, UN!"

Sasori stood before the blonde with a wicked, sadistic grin, a large bubble of red dripping from his lips. He held a ridiculously large knife is his hand, with the same redness clinging to the steel.

Deidara fell to the floor, his rear thumping on the floor. He scrambled backwards, eyes wide in fear. But soon Sasori's smirk melted into a pure grin, and he burst into laughter.

"You idiot!" he laughed aloud, his head rolling back, licking his lower lip. Confused, Deidara's eyes then spotted the bottle of open ketchup behind the highly entertained redhead. "_Baka!"_ Deidara thought to himself, his face lit aflame.

"D-damn you Sasori! Fucking ginger, un!" Deidara shouted, pushing himself off the floor. The rest of the Akatsuki had abandoned the movie, coming to the scene. Realizing what the red haired teen had done, several of the members burst into laughter.

"F-fu, fucking Blondie! Are you retarded!" Hidan roared in laughter, leaning on the counter to wipe tears of laughter from his eyes. Kisame chuckled hoarsely, and Itachi watched with a mildly amused expression. Deidara, ready to die from embarrassment, cried out.

"S-shut up, un!" The rest of the group ignored him his cry however, continuing to tease him till they returned to the movie. Deidara spent the time wrapped up in his blanket, sleeping with his back turned on Sasori.

Though Deidara was unaware of it, Sasori spent the rest of the movie offhandedly sneaking glances at the adorable blonde.

Sasori released another chuckle, shaking his head lightly with a hand running through his bloody red hair. "Clueless brat…"


	5. Chapter 5

(A/N): And we continue on… This is the morning after last chapter, by the way. Enjoy. :3

Deidara awoke once again with a tear stained face that Saturday morning, the warmth of the sun through his window warming his body. He felt that his throat was raw and stared emptily at his bed sheets for a moment, which were pooled at his feet.

He was able to recollect himself after a few minutes of silence, at which point he decided that today he was going to visit them. He headed for the shower, a determined smile on his face.

-x-

He dressed modestly, yet appropriately for the visit. His jacket was a warm, black with a fur lining. It was on top of his black three quarters shirt, plain, and he had a small religious bracelet around his wrist. His jeans were simply light gray skinnies, with a black studded belt, fingerless gloves and black converses. He wore his hair up again, his usual fringe in place.

"Bye Nii-san!" Naruto said cheerily from his place on the couch, still not dressed and eating a bowl of cereal in front of the TV. Deidara smiled back and waved at his younger sibling; "Bye Naruto, be a good little kiddo" he said fondly.

Naruto wouldn't be accompanying him on this trip. His younger sibling had said he thought a private visit would be good for Deidara, and he had plans to go to the Arcade with his new found best friend, Sasuke.

Once outside, Deidara walked in a brisk, but calm way. The air was growing warmer each day, but for now it was still early; thus the cold wet feeling of March's air was enough to give Deidara light goose bumps.

The cemetery was just outside of Amegakure, at the very beginning of the road that led to Konoha City. Deidara's father had grown up in Konoha and their mother had grown up in an orphanage, so their burial's location was appropriate. Deidara soon reached the location, and the large, black iron wrought gates made a familiar tightness clench on the blonde's chest.

Their headstones were right next to each other, and extremely simple light gray ones. Traditional; like their personalities had been. Deidara smiled weakly before the two, and he kneeled down with his sneakers on the dewy rain-soaked grass to speak to them.

He sucked a breath into his chest, and then spoke.

"Hey guys, un" he said softly, smiling. "Mom, Dad, how are you two doing up there? I'm sure it's great there… Peaceful. I hope you like Heaven, I'm sure it's quite serene, un" he laughed lightly at this, before continuing.

"But really. I miss you too so much, un, but I'd much prefer you be there then here if it meant suffering through a surgery or something like that to keep you alive, un. It's so much better for you to be at peace there then disturbed here, un. Resting in peace, you know, un?"

He smiled again, reaching forward. He brushed his fingertips lightly across the cold, wet headstone of his mother's grave, and then his father's, fingering the inky black carving of his name on the headstone. He felt the curl of letters, the jutting lines, and closed his eyes. He sighed.

He told them of his new life; of their home, the town, Naruto's new crush, their school, his schedule, his classes, and most of all his friends. He even spent a few minutes speaking of a certain irritating red head, before continuing.

"So, I guess things are pretty good un, all things considered. But they'll never be the same without you un…" Deidara said, summing up his story. He smiled weakly, running his fingers through the blonde fringe of his hair.

He stood up slowly, brushing bits of shrub off his jeans. He looked up and around for a moment, when his eyes caught on something he never would've expected.

Sasori stood in front of a large black headstone, his head down and hands shoved in his pockets. From his distance Deidara could see the red head's lips moving, as if he were talking to the residents of the grave. Deidara's eyes widened in surprise.

He approached the red haired teen carefully, making sure he heard nothing until the blonde was a few feet away from him. "S-Sasori?" Deidara spoke, his voice cautious and frail. The red head looked up, and his eyes locked with Deidara's.

"_That's weird…_" Deidara thought to himself as he stared at the red head, "_I never noticed how pretty Sasori's eyes are, un…" _

They were a warm, chocolate brown with auburn speckles and milky tan swirling parts. They were wide and vulnerable, so unlike his usual expression, a sort of childish exposed air to them. Deidara swallowed.

Sasori finally spoke, his words calm and strained. "Deidara… What are you doing here…?" "I'm visiting someone… I was going to ask you the same question" the blonde replied. He watched as Sasori's eyes darted from the grave's headstone, and back to Deidara.

"My uh, parents reside here. I was just taking the chance to visit them" Sasori said carefully. His face was slightly pained, and Deidara's eyes lowered to read the names and dates on the headstone. "They died when you were young…" Deidara commented.

Sasori nodded. "When I was six… A train crash" he explained. Deidara felt his throat tighten uncomfortably, as he knew what the red head was going to say next. "Who're you visiting? I mean, you just moved here, who could you possibly k-"

Deidara, not wanting to hear the words, cut him off. "My parents, un. They died a few weeks ago, that's why I moved here, un, Child Services" he said, he shut his eyes forcefully, refusing to look at the red head's shocked face.

As Sasori's brain took in this new information, he began to feel like more and more of an asshole. "_Shit!"_ he thought to himself, "_I've been making this kid feel like shit for a week, only to find out he just lost his fucking parents? Shit!"_

Sasori looked up, only to see the last thing he could've possibly wanted to see. Tears were bubbling up on the blonde's eyelids, threatening to fall. He saw the pained expression on the teen's face, and cringed.

"I-I'm sorry for asking D-Deidara, that was insensitive, I k-know it's probably harder for you than me, sorry…" he said. He reached out slowly, and cupped the blonde's shoulder with his hand. He blinked in surprise as the blonde crumpled in his arms, and he was forced to embrace the blonde in a hug.

The blonde buried his face in Sasori's chest, the warm soft cotton of the red head's light gray and black striped sweater. Sasori rolled up his sleeves and awkwardly wrapped his arms around Deidara, unused to the sudden intimacy of the moment.

"There, there…" he murmured, saying what he thought would sound comforting. "It's okay…" he continued, running his fingers through the teen's surprisingly soft blonde locks. He felt the warm tears dribbling through the fabric of his shirt, and he cringed.

After a few minutes Deidara pulled away, his tan face reddened and blotchy. He sniffled heavily, and wiped his eyes on his sleeve. "Sorry –_hic!-_ Un… I didn't mean to trap you like that, un…" Sasori, rubbing the front of his sweater, smiled awkwardly.

"It's okay Deidara, sorry for bringing it up…" Sasori spoke. He found it odd to be treating the blonde with such respect, but he suddenly found it appropriate.

Deidara wanted nothing more than to change the topic. "So…" he spoke, his voice still somewhat raw and uneven. "What part are you thinking about doing for the play, un?" he asked, and watched the red haired teen with interest.

"I almost always end up as the one doing lights and sound, but I think I'll audition for the Mad Hatter. If I don't get it then it's no biggie, but I might as well try" Sasori said, smiling at the blonde.

Deidara smiled in reply. "I think you'd be really good for that part, Sasori. It's a big part, but I think you could pull it off" he said. And it was true, and this more dramatic, romance version of Alice, the Mad Hatter was her rather insane love interest.

"Yeah, but I think I may drop out depending on who gets the part of Alice" Sasori said, laughing. "Who're you going to audition for?" he asked.

Deidara chuckled softly. "March Hare, un. I know someone like Tobi or Hidan will probably get it, un, but I really wanna try" Deidara explained.

Sasori, nodding, spoke. "Yeah, it's kind of a shame there aren't more major parts though, I think you'd be a good actor" he said. Inside his head, he was thinking to himself in shock. "_Sweet Jesus, I'm actually complimenting the brat!_"

Deidara smiled, blushing lightly. "_Wait, why the hell am I blushing at something Sasori said?_" he thought to himself. He couldn't voice this however, and smiled wider.

"Thanks, un. Hey, do you wanna… like, maybe practice our lines together? We could go to your apartment our something un…" Deidara asked, his face burned with an unbelievable intensity, and he reached a hand up to rub his cheek.

Sasori's eyes widened. "Sure, that sounds like fun" he said, surprised, but pleasantly so. Deidara grinned brightly. "We can order pizza and hang out and stuff" the blonde said.

Sasori smiled. "Yeah, and I can show you my art, _true art_" he said, but was obviously kidding. Deidara laughed and swatted at the teenager's head, narrowly missing the bloody red locks. The red head laughed and stumbled, running away.

The two laughed, chasing after each other in an odd location.

-x-

The two teens were in Sasori's living room, the smell of pizza and carbonated soda wafting through the air. Deidara stood and Sasori sat, watching as the blonde animatedly acted out the March Hare.

"Ah, but it's very rude to sit down without being invited! I say it's rude. It's very very rude, indeed! Hah!" Deidara spoke, stumbling goofily back and forth, waggling his fingertip. Sasori spoke for the other characters, and then the blonde continued.

"You enjoyed our singing? Oh, what a delightful child! Hah! I'm so excited, we never get compliments! You must have a cup of tea! Ah, yes indeed! The tea, you must have a cup of tea!" he mimicked pouring tea as Sasori read the other lines, and they continued on like this till the end of the scene.

Once done, Deidara collapsed on the cushy leather loveseat before him, and exhaled heavily. His expression was bright though, and a light trickle of sweat ran down his temple. He had a paper plate before him, with plentiful portions of food to be piled on it. Pizza, chips, cake, and everything else unhealthy he could imagine.

Sinking his teeth into the pizza, he smiled and thought to himself. "_Jeez, Sasori's got everything! I would've never thought he'd be loaded!_" Frolicking in the land of good tasting food, he took a moment to focus on Sasori.

"I really like you as the March Hare Dei, I think you've got a good chance, even with crazies like Hidan and Tobi going for the part" Sasori said, smiling. He leant forward, reaching to his coffee table.

"Really? Thanks, un" Deidara said, leaning forward to grab the last slice of pizza. "I think you're Mad Hatter impression is dead on un, I never would've thought you could get so into a part" the blonde complimented.

Sasori was about to reply, when he was interrupted by surprise. Deidara's hand was over his, both teen's reaching for the same slice of pizza. Sasori and Deidara's eyes both slowly trailed upwards, till they locked eyes.

"Oh_, helllll _no, brat" Sasori crooned, staring determinedly at the blonde with a cocky smirk on his face. Deidara grinned at the red head, grazing his nails over the top of the other's hand. "If you think I'm gonna give this slice up just because we've made nice un, you're dead wrong" the blonde replied.

"On three?" Sasori questioned, his muscles tensing. Deidara licked his lower lip, eyes bright. "On three" he agreed.

"One… Two… _Three!"_

The two lunged at each other, fighting furiously for the last slice. Deidara toppled over, falling on the red head's torso. The blonde was awkwardly smushed against the red head, one arm at an angle, elbow pinned on the floor, and his other trapped between his and Sasori's torsos.

Deidara stared into the red head's eyes, his face hot and tingling. He swallowed uncomfortably, as Sasori's smoldering, dark brown eyes bore into his own. He was broken from his thoughts as Sasori spoke, his voice husky and amused.

"I win, brat".

Deidara blinked in confusion, till he looked up and noticed that the hard fought over pizza slice was within Sasori's grip. He scowled.

"Damn you... un" Deidara cursed, pushing himself off the red head and sitting on the floor. Sasori chuckled, kneeling with the slice on a paper plate. "I'll cut you a deal" he said, smirking. Deidara looked at him quizzically, waiting to hear his proposition.

"Do a scene from Alice and Wonderland, as _Alice_. If you do it, and do it well, you get the slice, and I'll do your homework" Sasori said, smirking. Deidara's eyes widened in surprise.

The blonde's stomach growled, and he cringed. "Fine, un. But I pick the damn scene, un!" Deidara said. Sasori chuckled, grinning victoriously. He plopped down on the couch, giving Deidara time to prepare himself.

-x-

Sasori's back sunk into the cushy fabric of his couch, his eyes wide and his stomach stirring. The blonde's performance had… blown him away. Deidara had completely lost his personality, and Sasori's was unable to see the dorky, awkward little brat he was used to.

Deidara had read the lines from the very last scene, a short and melancholy passage. He sounded exactly as Sasori had imagined Alice should, and portrayed her perfectly. The red head was shocked.

"_Screw gender rules... Deidara's perfect for this role!"_ Sasori thought to himself. He was interrupted by his thoughts however, as Deidara spoke.

"Do I get my pizza now, un?" he asked, grinning. He'd read the red head's expression easily. He had a knack for letting all his thoughts and nervousness melt away when he read lines, becoming his character. And as much as he hadn't wanted to be Alice, he'd done so for the sake of his growling stomach.

Sasori blinked, then smirked, then laughed. "God brat, is the only thing you can think about food? Here" he handed the starved blonde his reward, who promptly began devouring his meal. "Auditions are on Monday, and I think we're ready" Sasori said, smiling.

Deidara put his meal down and wiped his mouth on his palm, smiling softly at Sasori. "Yeah, un. I know we've had more than a few bumps along the way this week un, but I'd really like to be friends Sasori" Deidara said.

Sasori felt an unfamiliar warmth tingling in the pit of his stomach, and ran a hand through his unruly red hair. He licked his lips. "Yeah… I'd really like that, _Deidara_" he said. He reached out, offering his hand for a shake. Deidara grinned, and took it.

Without thinking Sasori pulled the blonde into a hug, wrapping his arms around the teen for a second time. He cradled the blonde in his grip, inhaling his lemon scent as his soft blonde hair tickled his face.

Deidara's face felt warm and prickly, and he hugged the red head back, gratefully accepting the embrace. "Thanks Sasori…" he murmured. Sasori, unsure why he'd hugged his new acquaintance but not unhappy about it, replied: "you're welcome Dei…"

(A/N): Heyo. So hmm…. Quite a dynamic change in our characters this chapter, eh? Lol, please R/R, and answer a question for me. Up until recently I hadn't really reviewed anyone's stories, and now that I've started doing so, I've realized they reply back to me via message. SHIT. Am I supposed to be doing that? XD Lol, please answer that along with your review.

Have a lovely day :3


	6. Chapter 6

(A/N): Oh boy, oh boy, praise the Lord, it's another chapter! *pegged with a brick* Ouch… just trying to be enthusiastic… Anyways, in this chapter, it's finally time to see auditions, and our story's antagonist is mentioned! Enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or anything associated with it. It all belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

-x-

Deidara sighed, sinking back into the cushy fabric of his bean bag chair in the theatre. Everyone, the Akatsuki, other drama kids, and a handful of other girls hoping to get the role of Alice, crowded the room, all huddled around the stage where auditions where being held.

On stage was a freshman girl, thin with long straightened brown hair. She read for Alice, and her performance was… less than admirable. Her lips moved in what was supposed to be a passionate way, but came off more as her trying to devour a cheeseburger in slow motion. Her voice was uneven and cracking and pretty much everyone cringed while watching her.

"but Mr. Rabbit! surely I c-!" Ms. Mitarashi, lounging lazily in her armchair, cut the brunette off mid-sentence. "Look, thank you for auditioning, but that was quite enough. NEXT!" she hissed. The brunette's eyes widened in shock, and she dashed off stage in shame. Ms. Mitarashi sighed.

"I said NEXT! Tobi, that's you!" she roared. The called for Uchiha looked up in surprise, and a childish grin crept onto the raven-haired teen's face. "Tobi's next? YAY! Tobi will do great because Tobi is a good boy!" he cheered, standing. He weaved between the many students crowding the room, and clambered onto the stage.

"Tobi Uchiha, auditioning for the part of the March Hare. Begin" Ms. Mitarashi said lazily. The teen nodded brightly, cleared his throat. His expression changed, losing its' sheen, and changed. And then he began speaking.

"You enjoyed our singing? Oh, what a delightful child! Hah! I'm so excited, we never get compliments! You must have a cup of tea! Ah, yes indeed! The tea, you must have a cup of tea!" he leapt up onto a black wooden block and leant forward, mimicking plucking up a tea kettle and pouring it into a cup.

"Birthday? Hahaha! My dear child, this is not a birthday party, of course not! Heheh! This is an _un_-birthday party! Imagine, just one birthday every year. Ah, there are 364 unbirthdays, which is precisely why we're gathered here to cheer!"

The raven haired teen continued his act, leaping and singing and skipping about. He held the character of the March Hare perfectly, keeping all in the room believing he was the spastic rabbit. Finally he finished, leaving all in surprised awe.

Sasuke began clapping, and then Naruto, and slowly everyone in the room followed suit. Deidara joined in as well, but as he watched he felt his stomach twist uncomfortably. "_Crap… I'll never compare to that, especially since I'm going right after Tobi un…"_ his fears were confirmed when Ms. Mitarashi spoke:

"Very convincing Tobi! Now get off my stage. Next is Deidara Iwa, auditioning for the March Hare as well". All the eyes in the room fell on Deidara, and he felt his throat tighten. "_Craaaap!"_

Awkward silence filled the room until Sasori stood, drawing eyes. He cleared his throat. "Yo, Ms. Mitarashi. Now I know I'm not the only one whose realized this but, Dei here is gonna totally blend in the background after Tobi's performance" the red head said.

"_Well gee…_" Deidara thought, a scowl forming on his lips. _"Thanks for pointing it out, dickwad…"_ he thought irritably. But Sasori continued.

"But ya know, I helped Dei with his lines, and we read Alice as a joke. If you'd consider, I betcha cash that Blondie here would be a great Alice". Several girls right out gasped, and Deidara felt his brother and the rest of the Akatsuki's surprised raised brows on him.

Ms. Mitarashi stared at the blonde with interest, smirking. "Is that so…?"

Deidara cringed, clearing his throat. "Um, I uh, don't think that un, that'd be uh, a good idea, un…" he stammered awkwardly. Ms. Mitarashi was hearing none of it however, cutting him off.

"A romanticized, horror version of Alice and Wonderland with a _male _Alice?" she asked herself aloud, chuckling maliciously. She plucked an umbrella off the stage, and turned and pointed straight at Deidara.

"You. Get up here, now" Deidara trembled as he clambered on stage, preparing for the biggest embarrassment of his life. "You read for Alice first, and once you do, _then _you can read for March Hare" she ordered. Deidara tried to argue, but she cut him off.

Deidara sighed, and slowly began.

-x-

Sasori stepped into the messy backstage of his theatre classroom, maneuvering between various random props. He pushed the thick black curtains of the stage behind him, and looked at the sight before him in surprise.

His theatre teacher Ms. Mitarashi, commonly called Anko, was a total mess. She was throwing props around at random, and kicking chairs over. She let out an ungodly scream, before covering her face with her hand and leaning against one of the dressers.

The red haired teen cleared his throat, drawing his theatre teacher's eyes. The woman's pale brown eyes were filled with surprise, before turning angry and sharp. "What do you want, Pinocchio?" she growled. Sasori took a few careful steps forward, keeping distance.

"I came to see when you'd have the selected parts up… What's wrong?" he asked. His teacher sighed heavily, wiping her hand on her forehead. "It's this damn play Akasuna. There were only two decent auditions for the main role, and one of them is the biggest bitch on this side of Japan, and the other's a boy!" she grumbled.

Sasori raised a brow. "What's wrong with the girl…? Who is it?" he asked. He'd left after his own audition, and at the time hadn't seen a single half decent audition for Alice besides Deidara.

"Sakura Whoreano, I mean Haruno. She's gotta be the biggest, most irritating, stuck up teen in this circus we call a high school" Anko said wistfully, collapsing into the chair that'd been pulled in at the dresser. Sasori pulled up a chair, sitting with his legs around the back and watching his teacher.

"So what're you going to do?" he questioned. Anko growled under her breath, clearly agitated. "I'm going to have to get that pussy of a boy Deidara Iwa to play Alice! There's no other way…" she said. Sasori's eyes widened.

"R-really? That's good…" he said. She growled. "Hell no it's not! He'll never agree to it, how the hell am I supposed to convince him to do it…" she complained. Sasori licked his lips thoughtfully, biting his lower lip.

"You know, I'm getting pretty close to him, all things considered. If I convince him to do it, will you give me the role of the Mad Hatter?" Sasori asked his teacher. She looked up at him in surprise, but her familiar, cocky grin leaked onto her face.

"Hell yes! You'd do that? I was going to give your role to this other kid, but hell, you were good! Convince Barbie boy, and the Mad Hatter's as good as yours!" she cackled, rubbing her hands together mischievously. She stood up, making her way out of the backstage.

"This is just great, now everything will work out perfectly! With that Blondie playing Alice, we're a shooing for a great production!"

Sasori watched as the odd woman scurried away, muttering herself. A small smirk was upon his lips, and he chuckled to himself. "Okay, surely I can get Dei to agree, he knows otherwise he'll just be a stage hand. Plus, I'll get my role, being part of the actual cast for the first time since freshman year. Perfect" he said aloud, leaning against the dresser.

Suddenly a thought hit him like a sack of bricks, and his brown eyes widened impossibly large as he stumbled in shock. "SHIT!" he hissed, breathing raggedly. "Shit, shit, shit, shit on a fucking birthday cake!"

"If Dei is Alice, and I'm the Hatter, then we'll be…" he clung to the edge of the dresser at the thought, his lunch rising up out of his stomach.

"_Love interests"._

-x-

Sasori and Deidara lounged in the theatre classroom alone, the bell for dismissal having already rung. Deidara looked up expectantly at the red head before him, his skinny jean covered legs spread on the floor as he sat. Sasori, crouched atop a large box, attempted to not make eye contact.

Deidara cleared his throat, a slightly amused, slightly worried expression on his face. "Yo, un. You gonna tell me what's up Sasori, or are we just gonna sit here and wait for the janitors to get us?" Deidara asked. His voice was comical, but he was actually concerned.

Sasori cringed at the thought of what he was about to do, and sighed heavily. He licked his lower lips, preparing to word what he was about to say very carefully.

"Dei… You are… an awesome actor. And I really do mean that" he said. Deidara's eyes were large and child-like, as he could hear the tone of Sasori's voice loud and clear. He cringed, thinking to himself. "_Shit, un… I didn't get the part, and now Ms. Mitarashi's sent Sasori to freaking drop the news..."_

"But anyone whose seen a play knows that some parts are meant for people, and some aren't" he said, and earned a weak nod in response from Deidara. "Like, I couldn't play a flamboyant, extravagant man as well as say, Naruto. And Naruto could never play a twisted, dark character like I could. It's not so much that we need to be like the characters we play, we just need something in common with them that connects us to them".

"I can connect with the Mad Hatter because he has a tendency to be unintentionally blunt, which makes him seem rude. He scares people away" Sasori said, sighing. He ran a hand through his unruly red hair, his fingers catching in their curls.

"Unfortunately Dei, Ms. Mitarashi just doesn't see you connecting with the March Hare. And as you know, Tobi _really _does" Sasori said. Deidara bit his lower lip, fearing what he'd say next.

"But you know who Ms. Mitarashi, I, and everyone else who auditioned thinks you connect with?" Deidara's eyes widened in surprise, confused by the red head's words. His response caught and clogged in his throat, so he simply shook his head no.

Sasori licked his lower lip, biting it nervously. He finally spoke, his sentence nothing more than a harsh whisper.

"_Alice"._

Deidara eyes were like mirrors, and Sasori could see his reflection perfectly in the smooth, light blue and cerulean surface of the blonde's irises. He saw a nerve in the teen's neck twist, and he bit lower lip yet again in anticipation. Before Deidara could speak, Sasori spoke again.

"The only other girl that could possibly be Alice is a total and utter bitch, and would never cooperate with the rest of the cast. Not to mention Ms. Mitarashi has no interest in placing you in any other role, you'd get stuck as a stage hand. Come on Dei… Do the right thing here".

Deidara, finally overcoming his shock, sighed loudly. He wetted the inside of his dry mouth, and ran his hands through his long blonde hair several times. "Sasori, be honest with me, un. Whose part are you getting? I know you must know, un" he asked, standing. He placed a hand on the red haired teen's shoulder, staring at him.

As the blonde's eyes penetrated him Sasori found he could nothing but tell the truth, and the words slipped past his lips with ease. "The Hatter" he said, a cringe creeping onto his face.

Though Deidara had expected it his eyes widened anyways, and he exhaled. Stumbling away, he sat down on a nearby chair. "This must be really important to you then un…" Deidara said. Sasori, being the hard headed fellow he was, would never agree to kiss another boy unless the circumstance was extremely important to him.

Sasori sighed and chuckled dryly, smiling weakly. "Yeah, I just don't wanna see this production go down the tubes. And if kissing another guy is what it takes to save it, I'm just fine with that" he said. Deidara laughed softly as well, before standing again.

He held out an arm for his red headed companion, a smile once again on his face. "C'mon, un. Why don't we go see a movie or something, un?" he offered. Sasori, a brow raised in surprise, cracked a smile as well. "Sure" he said, taking the blonde's hand and standing. "That sounds nice".

(A/N): Eh? Eh? I'm pretty sure you guys saw this coming, but I'd tried to make you excited anyways. R/R, and if you want, write who you think is going to have which part in your review. I'd love to read your predictions.

Have a lovely day, per usual.


	7. Chapter 7

-x-

(A/N): Good day my little readers. So in this delightful chapter our, *cue dramatic ass music* antagonist is introduced! And she causes some serious ass trouble. We see a bit of Naruto, whom we haven't heard from recently, and of course get a plentiful portion of Sasori. Enjoy!

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto, or anything associated with it. It all belongs the Masashi Kishimoto.

-x-

Sakura Haruno stormed through the halls of Amegakure High School, her pure fury practically oozing off of her. Wide eyed freshmen tripped and stumbled backwards, scurrying away from her like newborn puppies facing a furious husky.

The cast list was in her grip, crumpled and torn ruthlessly by her vicious nails. Grinding her teeth, she spoke with a venomous voice. "To think, that crack head Anko thinks she can cast some new faggot for the lead role when I'm standing right here!" she hissed.

Her best friend and loyal companion, Ino Yamanaka, followed behind her; dangerously high heels stumbling and tripping her as she tottered after her fuming friend.

"C'mon Sakura! Be reasonable!" Ino pleaded, catching up to the pinkette and pulling on her bright purple miniskirt to readjust it. Sakura shoved a harmless freshman out of the way, and Ino struggled to step over the teen as she ran after her friend.

"You don't need this role! You're beautiful, talented, why should it matter if some gay new kid got a lead in the play?" Ino reasoned. Her skirt bunched up once again, and with a scowl she pulled it back into position.

Sakura breathed in and out, her breaths ragged as she stormed on. She slammed a nearby locker door shut, earning a shout of distress from the locker's owner. She turned sharply around, her heels screeching on the floor as she met her blonde friend's eyes.

"I'm well aware Ino. But I am the best girl in this whole damn school, and so yes, it DOES matter to me if that fag gets to play Alice." she ranted. She turned back again, and continued on.

Finally the two teens reached their destination, a skinny, long blonde haired boy facing away from them. Sakura bared her teeth in a vicious smile, cracking her knuckles.

"Time to give a certain newbie the welcome he's been asking for…"

-x-

Deidara blinked in confusion as his locker door slammed shut before him, and his eyes met a pair of bright, cold green ones. Sakura grinned a fierce grin, her sharpened white teeth gleaming. Ino stood behind her, face in a cringe.

"Hi there _Deidara_" she greeted, her voice thick and achingly sweet, like molasses. "Have you seen the cast list for theatre yet?" she questioned. Deidara, realizing who she was, swallowed; his throat thick and dry.

"Um, yeah, un… Why?" he stuttered. Sakura's teeth ground together, and Deidara cringed at the sound. "Because dear Deidara, you've gotten the lead!" she said in a strained, sing song voice. She released a hand of its fiercely held fist, flexing her fingers.

Deidara smiled weakly, backing away till his back hit his locker. "Yeah, un… I'm sorry… Did you want that role?" he asked, well aware that she had, and was cast as his understudy.

Suddenly any trace of false kindness swept off Sakura's face, and her expression contorted with rage. Her hand curled into a fist, smashing into the locker next to Deidara's head.

"WHAT THE HELL KIND OF A QUESTION IS THAT YOU STUPID LITTLE FAGGOT! OF COURSE I WANTED THE ROLE, AND I DAMN WELL DESERVE IT! I'M TENFOLD THE ACTOR YOU'LL EVER BE, YOU DON'T DESERVE THE PART YOU QUEER!" she screamed.

Sakura grabbed Deidara forcefully by his shirt front and pulled him forward, only to slam him back into the lockers with massive force. Ino came forward to stop her friend, but Sakura pushed her back.

"I'LL FUCKING MAKE YOU BLEED, FAGGOT! BLEED SO BAD YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO ACT FOR WEEKS!" she screamed. Deidara's face scrunched up in fear and her shut his eyes as she lunged at him, her sharp nails slicing across his cheek. Tears stung at his eyes but Deidara held them in, biting his lower lip.

"OUCH, UN!" he hissed, all the breath whooshing out of his mouth as she kneed him in the stomach. Sakura released her grip on the boy, letting him fall to the floor.

Deidara's head hit the floor, making an audible thump. He felt his cheek numb to the coldness of the tile floor, and he watched with hazy vision as Sakura's feet stepped and walked away from him. A strange, echoing laugh filled his ears, unclear and thick.

"Un…" he mumbled, losing any sense besides the pain stinging his abdomen and cheek. He barely managed to think at all before blacking out, and merely thought one thing: "_I feel numb again…"_

-x-

Hazy. Deidara felt hazy. His mind slurred through a muddled up state of conscious and unconscious, unable to move without being knocked back out by the harsh waves of his sea of thoughts. Feeling like he'd hit the sand, Deidara sunk back in unconscious.

"OUCH!"

It felt like a wave of cold water hit the blonde's face, and he suddenly lurched out of his sleep. Vision impaired, Deidara groaned and reached up to rub his eyes.

"Unnn…" he moaned, muscles aching as he woke more and more. A pair of hands tugged his arms away from his face, and he blinked several times before seeing who it was.

"… Nii-san?" Deidara asked, his throat dry and voice hoarse. Naruto sat at the edge of their couch, his young face filled with worry. "Oh Dei!" he cried, throwing his arms around his brother and taking him in to a strangling hug.

Eyes bugging out of his head, a grin crept onto Deidara's face and he laughed at his younger brother's typical behavior. "Hey Nii-san, what's up, un?" he asked, still chuckling. Naruto pulled away, his big cerulean eyes filled with worry.

"Nii-san, don't you remember?" Naruto asked in a fragile voice. Deidara blinked and chuckled again, sighing. "I remember getting my ass kicked by the Sakura bitch, and then nothing" he said. Naruto smiled in spite of his worry, reaching up and gingerly touching his brother's temple.

"Ouch, un!" Deidara hissed, an unexpected pain stinging his skin. An unfamiliar throbbing pounded against his skull, and Deidara suddenly felt the need to lie down. "Ugh, un…" he groaned.

Naruto watched his brother sadly. "Well, yeah, Nii-san, that's about what happened. That girl knocked your block off, and then you passed out. I brought you home" he said. Closing his eyes in pain, Deidara asked "what's the damage little bro?"

"Well, your stomach's really bruised up, all dark red and purplish. It might take a whole month to heal up. The scratches on your cheek aren't bad; they'll just hurt, gone in a week probably. And when you fell well, you obviously banged up your temple, your shoulder as well" Naruto explained. Smiling weakly, he spoke again: "you got pretty beat up Dei"

Deidara laughed lightly again, but found even that hurt his head. Cupping his temple, he asked: "how'd you find me, anyways? Our lockers are nowhere near each others'" Naruto rubbed the back of his neck and smiled weakly, licking his lips. "Uh, well, you see…"

Naruto was interrupted however as their front door swung open, and Deidara's eyes were drawn to the apartment's entrance.

Sasori had just stepped inside, a large bag of ice swinging in his hand. He wore a pair of somewhat baggy blue jeans, a black shirt with golden print on it, and red converses. Looking up at the two of them, Deidara found himself caught in the teenager's moody, muddy brown eyes.

"… Hey" he greeted, waving slightly as he shut the door. Setting the ice down by the kitchen and wiping his hands on his jeans, Sasori walked up to the two siblings and sat down. Deidara, suddenly feeling small and inferior, shrunk down into the couch cushions.

"Sasori was the one that found you, and he used your phone to call me. And since the rest of Akatsuki had already gone home, he offered to help me take care of you" Naruto explained. "Great helper, by the way" Naruto said, smiling knowingly at the red head.

Blushing uncomfortably, Sasori cleared his throat and sat down. "Never mind that, I just wanted to make sure you were okay. That damn bitch Haruno, how dare she… Uh, anyways, are you alright?" he asked. Deidara blushed in response, and sat up.

"I-I'm fine, un, thanks for worrying. I could just use some pain meds and a few bags of that ice over there, un" Deidara said, stammering. Sasori nodded and stood, turning to get them.

Naruto smiled in a proud way, standing up as well and humming to himself. "Well Dei, I think we can agree that Sasori can take care of you, so if you don't mind I think I'll go call Sasuke-kun…" he said in a sing song voice. Eyes wide, Deidara turned rapidly as his brother left.

"H-hey, un! What?" he demanded, Naruto quickly made his way out, and just before his door shut, sang out: "Have fun!"

The slam of the door echoing through the living room, Deidara glared moodily at his lap. "_Typical Naruto, abandoning me whenever he thinks I might like a guy, un…" _ he was broken from his thoughts as Sasori sat down beside him however, with a bottle of Advil and two plastic baggies in one hand, a glass of water and the ice in the other.

"Here" he said, handing the blonde three Advil and the water. Deidara thirstily drank the liquid, downing his meds as well. Sasori filled both baggies with ice, and once done, handed the blonde one of them.

"Thanks, un" Deidara said gratefully, pressing the chilled surface to his bruised temple. Sighing contentedly as the coldness numbed his bruised head, he shut his eyes happily.

He opened them abruptly as he felt his shirt being lifted up, and found Sasori placing the other bag of ice on his abdomen. "Sasori!" he exclaimed.

The red head chuckled to himself as he shifted the dripping bag against the ugly, dark maroon and purple bruise that ran across Deidara's stomach. "Stupid brat, it'll be easier if you just cooperate, don't let your mind go crazy" he said. Blushing, Deidara nodded and laid back down.

Once finished Sasori allowed himself to relax, watching the blonde. "Thanks again, Sasori" Deidara murmured, staring at the ceiling. Sasori set a hand on the blonde's knee, and then spoke. "You're welcome Dei. But please, be more careful about Sakura, as you know now, she's a real threat. I'm going to turn her into the office tomorrow and see if I can get her suspended, but even that won't keep her away. You've got to be cautious".

Deidara frowned and sat up, the coldness of the ice searing his bruised stomach. "Yeah, un… Don't turn her in though; I wanna see if she'll get any better first, un…" Deidara asked. Frowning Sasori replied "I don't think so Dei, this needs to be turned in it's not okay for her to hurt you like that and get away with it. She's not going to stop" he warned.

Deidara turned and looked Sasori straight in the eye, his blue irises bright and determined. "Really Sasori, I mean it. If we turn her in it'll only anger her, it'll be better if I just deal with her bullying until show time. I can handle it" Deidara insisted.

Sasori sank back into the couch, frowning, but nonetheless agreed. "Okay Deidara, whatever you think…" he said, sighing. "I'm not happy about it, though" he said. The red head's murky, milky brown eyes trailed from his lap to Deidara's stomach, and he frowned at the dark red, dark purplish colored wound that was spread across it.

He reached over, pulling the dripping cold bag of ice off the blonde's abdomen, and set it down. He ran his fingers across the blonde's stomach, a chilled, wetness covering his fingertips. Deidara stifled a giggle at the numbed, ticklish feeling the red head's actions triggered.

"Honestly Dei, you're such a klutz, people would probably believe you just tripped and earned that bruise" Sasori said with a chuckle. Deidara, blushing, poked Sasori with his foot. "Anyways, what'd you do that managed to get you that muscled up? I don't see you joining any sports teams" he commented.

Deidara's abdomen was rather well built, for under his serious bruising was a well developed four pack, slightly faded from a six. Deidara blushed at the red head's attention, shifting away. "I was on swim team at my old school, un. I'd join this one too, but the season's already over, un" Deidara explained, watching the red head nervously.

Sasori nodded thoughtfully, leaning back away from the blonde. "Hey un, don't think you can eye me up just cause I'm injured un, and not return the favor" Deidara said. Sasori blinked in surprise as, with great effort, Deidara heaved himself up, abandoning his ice packs to grab the red head. He lifted up the cotton fabric of his shirt, revealing his chest.

"No fair, un. How'd you get all buff?" Deidara asked. The red head's chest was well built for sure, with a defined, toned six pack to decorate it. A few nicks and scars dotted his skin, giving his muscles depth.

"I do weight lifting, brat, and I'm a formidable swimmer as well" Sasori said, scooting away and covering his abs. "Really, un? What's your best stroke?" Deidara asked, following the red head down the couch. He sat with his hip against Sasori's, one arm over the red head's lap.

"Butterfly, what about you?" Sasori asked. "Breast, un" Deidara murmured. He leant over the red haired teenager without thinking, till his torso was directly over the others. "Dei?" Sasori questioned, but didn't resist. He laid his head down, allowing the blonde atop him more space. Their faces were mere inches apart, as their subconscious actions took control.

Deidara swallowed; his throat slightly dry. "I, um, really like you Sasori, un" he said aloud, albeit softly. Sasori heard him however, and with a slightly dazed tone, replied. "Yeah, I like you too".

Deidara found that his mind was rather blank, pleasantly numb, as he spoke again, in nothing more than a murmur. "I feel like I should kiss you…" Sasori stared into Deidara's eyes, his milky tan and chocolate irises mixing with Deidara's dark azure and cerulean.

"Go ahead" he said; his voice slightly louder and clearer. Deidara leant down as Sasori leant up, and their lips met. Deidara smiled into the kiss as the warmth of the red head's lips transferred to his, and he shifted against him. Rocking his hips slowly against Sasori's, Deidara moaned as the red head gripped his rear.

Sasori wrapped his arms around the blonde, sitting up and allowing Deidara to slide onto his lap. He pressed the blonde against the couch back, pinning his wrists as he slipped his tongue into the other teen's mouth.

Deidara broke the kiss for a moment to catch his breath, his face flushed and a trickle of saliva hanging from his chin. Sasori darted his tongue out to catch the strand, before pressing their bodies together and kissing him again.

Sasori moved his mouth down and sunk his teeth into the soft, warm flesh of his blonde lover's neck, lapping up the tiny trickle of coppery blood that came from Deidara's skin. Deidara moaned again, entangling his fingers in the teen's bloody red locks.

After several more minutes of intimacy the two finally seemed satisfied, and broke apart. Deidara smiled at Sasori with slightly hazy eyes, breathing short breaths. "Yeah, un..." he said aloud, "I definitely like you" he said, laughing. Sasori chuckled at the blonde's idiocy, and gave him a quick kiss. "Silly brat. You _love_ me, and I love you" he said. Deidara nodded, happy.

-x-

(A/N): Eh? Lol, I hope you enjoy, and know that your reviews are what keep me going here. I'm on vacation right now, but when I'm not canoodling with my girlfriend or surfing with my brother, I'm writing.

Have a lovely day; don't forget to R/R.


	8. Chapter 8

(A/N): -Sigh- You guys aren't going to like this chapter, not one bit. Thanks for all the raging hate mail towards Sakura last chapter and, despite the fact that you won't like what happens this chapter, don't forget to R/R.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Naruto or anything associated with it, it all belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

-x-

Sasori sat on a park bench, bathing in the sun and soaking up the warmth of the April air. His face was trapped in a brooding, thoughtful frown, and his chocolate brown eyes were glazed by a contemplative murk.

The red head was dressed for the warmer weather, in a dark gray shirt, decorated by a rather intricate gold and red design. His gray undershirt was visible, poking out at his neck and shirt edges. He donned a pair of brown cargo shorts as well, and black converses.

Sasori cracked his knuckles, wringing his wrists. His frown deepened and his brow sunk as he thought, lost in a sea of his subconscious.

He and Deidara had been 'dating' per say, for about three weeks now. The play's showing was quickly approaching, and he and the blonde had become busier and busier as time passed. But within days of his blossoming romance with Deidara, Sasori had found himself overtaken by a strange emptiness, a sort of guilty numbness.

Sasori had never been in a real relationship with anyone before, let alone another male. And though he loved Deidara dearly and treasured what they had, he wasn't sure if it was right. He didn't know what love felt like, nor if what he and the blonde had was real. He didn't even know if he was really… gay.

Not to mention, their relationship had sprung on a short series of split seconds impulses and actions, as his usual impatience and Deidara's eagerness pushed them into romance without really getting to know each other.

He just wasn't sure about what they had. He felt like such a paradox, it was almost funny. He was unbelievably impatient, yet he thought true art was eternal, everlasting, never changing. And, like his artistic views, Sasori was unhappy that he'd not savored their friendship first, so they could eventually enter a long, happy relationship.

Not to mention his timing was terrible. With him and Deidara as the leads in the play they were unbelievably busy, and Sakura hadn't let up. She constantly caused trouble, ranging from pointless misdemeanors like filling the blonde's locker with flour, to real issues like throwing his book bag in the school pond. With all they had to juggle, they just didn't have enough time to date as well.

And at this point, Sasori had decided, he was going to have to end it, at least until after the play. It was only a week after the play before summer vacation, so he was sure that if he worded it right, Deidara would understand that they just needed to break it off for a bit until the play was over, and maybe give Sasori a minute to play for the other team…

And thus the red head waited with his usual impatience for Deidara to arrive, as he was supposed to meet him. Sasori drummed his fingertips together and gnawed on his lower lip moodily.

"Hey, un" a familiar voice greeted, and Sasori turned to meet eyes with his blonde lover. Deidara stood before him with a goofy, innocent grin, dressed in a loose, light bright blue shirt, with thick black stripes that only went over the front on it. He also wore gray and black plaid shorts, a pair of black converses, and a collection of blue and black rubber wristbands.

Sasori smiled despite his inner turmoil, and patted at the wooden space next to him. "Take a seat" he offered. Deidara obliged and plopped down next to his red haired boyfriend, sending minuscule quivers through the bench. Sasori reached down and subconscious held Deidara's hand, running his fingers over the soft, tan surface of the blonde's skin.

"So what's up, un? You look a little upset Sasori, un" Deidara asked curiously, squeezing the red head's hand. Sasori smiled weakly, and licked his lips. "Dei…" he murmured, turning to the blonde. He met eyes with his, milky and chocolate colored eyes battling his boyfriend's azure blue ones.

"I want to break up"

He said it in the most serious, clear cut voice he could. It broke the calm, breezy air in half, and Deidara felt his brain shut down as he dissected the words' meaning.

"W-What? Un?" he asked, his voice already quavering, hurt. Tears began to sting at his eyes, and he swallowed thickly. "I'm sorry Deidara, but we've both got too much to focus on right now, and our relationship just started so fast…" Sasori started out, his panic levels rising. This wasn't going as he'd planned…

Deidara pulled his hand from the red head's grip, backing away from him in fear. "H-how could you do this to me, un? I t-thought you said you loved me, un?" Deidara's voice was uneven, breaking at points, as tears began to border spilling from his eyes.

Sasori cringed at how poorly things were passing, and spoke as carefully as he could. He found his throat was clogging, and he bit his lower lip harshly. "I did too Dei, I did too…" he said.

"But I… I'm just not sure now; I'm so impatient with things like this, what if we just rushed into it… What if we were…" Sasori clenched his shorts' fabric into a fist, his nails digging into his palms. "What if we were wrong?" he whispered, his darkest fear coming to rise.

Deidara felt his lunch crawling up his throat, his stomach aching in pain. Tears stung at his eyes but he reached up, wiping them away at a furious pace, and stood up. He held onto the edge of bench shakily, trying to keep from vomiting.

"I… I trusted y-you, un… I thought you would stand up to the pressure b-because I thought you loved me, un, and w-wouldn't let someone as stupid a-as Sakura stand in our way…" he said, voice uneven and raw. He took a deep, shaky breath, tears leaking down his face. "But I guess I was wrong, un".

Deidara turned and ran, his legs pumping and his calves burning as he disappeared from the park. Tears streamed across his face, burning his skin with their salty essence, but he didn't stop until he was far, far away.

Sasori stared at the exit of the park where Deidara had left him, his insides aching with a dull, numb emptiness. He blinked back tears, as he hadn't cried in years, rubbing his agitated eyes and breathing heavily.

-x-

Sakura Haruno stood a few dozen feet away, her expression one of shock and awe. The water balloon full of mayo she'd be planning to throw was now long forgotten, splattered across the pavement. Slowly, a big, malicious grin crept onto the pink haired teen's face, her white teeth gleaming.

"Oh… This is just too perfect…" she said aloud, pulling her cell phone from her pocket without letting her gaze leave Sasori. She dialed Ino's number as the distant red head stood up, and made a slow departure from the park.

"Yellow?" a familiar, girlish voice said through Sakura's speakers. The pinkette rolled her eyes but spoke anyways, in a fast reply: "Hey Ino, it's me. The red head totally just dumped the fag, and it looks like he's interested in playing for the other team. Meet me up at the movies, and we'll decide our next move". Sakura snapped her phone shut and cackled mischievously to herself, a cruel grin on her face.

-x-

Ino Yamanaka sighed a girly sigh as she tottered through the warm semi-urbanized area of Amegakure, her sparkly purple heels tripping her every few feet. She tugged at her tight white skirt and pulled her sparkly purple top down, making her teetering way through the town. Finally she reached the small grocery store she'd been aiming for, and stumbled in through the sliding doors.

Sasori looked up from the pile of cans he'd been slowly stacking, his depressed, muddy brown eyes meeting the entrance. He raised a brow as a girl from his school, Ino Yamanaka, stepped in the store, and turned to Kisame.

"Yo, Sasori, why don't ya go help out that ditz over there? Get your mind off Dei" Kisame suggested. Sasori nodded and straightened up, cursing the fact that his blue-haired friend was assistant manager. "_Damn politeness policies, making Kisame head honcho…_" Sasori thought ruefully to himself.

"Good afternoon and welcome to the grocery store, may I be of assistance?" Sasori recited in a dull, unhappy voice. Ino looked to him in surprise, and a light smile crept onto her face. "_Well_" she thought to herself with a giggle, "_I wasn't expecting my target to waltz right up_".

"Um" she said, in her usual, confused ditzy voice, "I'm like, not sure, do you like, have any protein bars or like, diet shakes?" she questioned. Sasori looked at her with a raised brow, doubting she needed a diet of any kind.

She had a rather curvaceous figure, with arcs and turns in all the right places. Her shirt was more than a tad tighter than was Sasori's taste, but it suited her, showing off her rather large breasts. And her skirt, though questionably short, showed off her legs. And her eyes were a pretty light blue, slightly covered by a long fringe of light blonde hair.

Sasori blinked in surprise. "_Her hair's actually a lot like Dei's…" _he mused. "Uh, alright, I'm sure we've got something to your tastes. Please, follow me…" he said, leading the blonde girl down a few aisles before coming to a stop in front of a large shelf of diet snacks.

"Well here we've got the TrimFit Nutrients Bar, that's supposed to replenish your bones' calcium and prevent osteoporosis…" Sasori said, holding up the lime green plastic wrapped bar demonstratively. He went through a long line of weight loss scams, droning on the various health lies.

"But honestly" Sasori said, handing Ino the snack they'd finally decided on, "I don't think you need this stuff. You're perfectly thin already" he said, eying her again.

Ino blinked and allowing a light red flush to rise in her face, smiling a little smile. "R-really?" she asked, giggling. "You're such a gentleman Sasori! Not like most of the guys in Amegakure, anyways" she said. She reached forward teasingly, poking the red head in the ribs.

"Hey, hey now!" Sasori chuckled, grabbing her finger and her other wrist. "Let's not break the Sasori, shall we?" he asked. Ino looked him straight in the eyes and took several steps forward, her breasts brushing against the red head's chest. Sasori swallowed thickly, his mind going blank.

"I really like you right now Sasori, you're really nice…" Ino murmured, her eyes on the red head's lips. Sasori felt his heart thump in his chest, and he slowly let the blonde girl's wrists free. She stood tip toes and wrapped her arms around the red head's torso, kissing him softly on the lips, her tongue teasing his mouth. After a few minutes of this the two broke away, Ino smiling softly.

Sasori felt his face heat up from the intimacy with this barely known blonde, gripping the shelves behind him. Ino giggled lightly, poking him again. "Why don't we go see a movie this evening? And have dinner? I'll buy the popcorn" she asked, giggling as she spoke. Without waiting for a response the blonde scurried away, without even buying the bar they'd chosen.

Sasori watched for the second time as a blonde ran from him, his stomach churning uneasily. He reached up, brushing his fingers against his mouth, and sighed heavily.

"God, I hope I'm making the right decisions" he muttered aloud.

-x-

(A/N): Well, there ya go, did anyone expect that? xD Lol, I like the keep my writing fairly surprising, but without completely throwing the reader off track. Please R/R, and scream at me to write a chapter where Dei and Sasori get back together. It just might work. :P

-x-


	9. Chapter 9

(A/N): Oh ho ho, thanks for the hate mail over last chapter, guys. xD Just kidding. And good job to the few who noticed that Ino's like a less attractive female Deidara. That's a bit of the point. xD Please read and review, and don't forget to enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or anything associated with it. It all belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

Sasori walked at a sluggish pace to school, running his hands through his unruly, blood red locks. He sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes, which were even murkier than usual, somewhat resembling the residue at the bottom of a coffee pot.

His date with Ino had gone scarily well. The blonde girl knew all about swimming and the different strokes, apparently having been a past swimmer herself. He talked for a good while about his passion for art and she listened attentively, then traded turns and she talked about gardening. Sasori was surprised with her rather cultured views.

He went home that night and out of sheer boredom checked his Facebook, only to find that Yamanaka had sent him an 'in a relationship' request. He, somewhat questionably, accepted, and earned lots of online buzz about it.

And while things with one blonde were going well, things with Deidara were falling apart. He'd tried multiple times to patch things up with the blonde artist, and tried to explain that he was merely experimenting and that he still liked Deidara, but the teen wanted to no part of it. He was enraged.

And even now, Sasori had to admit his wording of things with the blonde were pretty stupid.

Ever since he and Deidara's break up he'd taken to hanging out with Kisame more. The thickset teen chose not to judge him, knowing well of Sasori's ever changing tastes and inability to stay still. He turned a street corner, where Kisame stood waiting.

"Hey" the blue-haired teen greeted, walking along with his red-haired friend. "Hey Kisame" he replied, sighing once again. He cracked his knuckles, an increasing habit. "How are you?" Kisame prompted, trying to pull the moody puppeteer out of his gloom.

"Shitty as usual" he replied shortly. Kisame chuckled hoarsely, running a hand through his massive, bright blue hair. "So we're back to square one, eh Sasori?" he joked. Turning and glaring at his much taller friend, Sasori crossed his arms.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he demanded. Kisame gave a gurgling laugh at his friend's typical behavior and stopped walking, preparing for a lengthy argument. "Ya know, you've been a lot more pleasant to be around since you and Blondie hit it off. Now that he isn't around with his sunshiny ball of fucking joy to keep you going, you're acting just like the moody, sarcastic ass you were before he showed up" Kisame said.

Sasori's frown deepened, and he leant against a nearby stop sign. "I think Deidara did good for ya Sasori. I don't know why on Earth you'd drop him for that blonde bimbo you've got now" he said. Sasori nodded thoughtfully and was about to speak, when the two teen's conversation was interrupted.

"SAAAASO-KUN!" a high-pitched, squealing voice cried. Sasori had little time to prepare as a familiar, soft and curvaceous body slammed into his, and Ino hugged him forcefully.

She giggled childishly as Sasori grunted, shifting and supporting her weight against his. Kisame chuckled hoarsely, rolling his eyes. "How are you?" she giggled, kissing his neck. Pulling her into his arms Sasori kissed the girl lightly on the lips, tasting her now-familiar lip gloss before replying "good as always. And how are you?"

Somehow the red head's voice sent her into peals of laughter again, and Ino hugged her newest boyfriend tighter. "Great! How could I not be with you as my sexy boyfriend?" she teased, kissing him again.

She was, to an extent, right. The red head was well dressed in a brown pullover he'd rolled up to his elbows, with alternating light and dark brown stripes. He also wore a pair of black basketball shorts, and brown flip flops. His hair was a bit more disheveled than usual due to the fact that he hadn't cut it recently, and since he'd been running his hands through it quite a bit.

He chuckled to himself, patting her hip. "C'mon now Ino, let's not make Kisame here sick to his stomach with all our lovey doveyness" Sasori joked, beginning to walk as he eyed his blue-haired friend. Ino turned to look at him and, obviously intimidated by his size, shrunk into Sasori's arms.

"H-Hi Kisame! How are you?" she squeaked. Kisame chuckled huskily at the ditz's reaction to him, sticking his hands into his pockets. "Quite well little lady, and you?" he asked. "Fine!" Ino squeaked.

The three walked to school together and Sasori, despite having a lovely blonde girl in his arms, found himself consumed with thoughts about what Kisame had said. He just couldn't stay satisfied, could he? He'd date Ino until after the play, he decided, and would go after Deidara again later. Surely he could win him back…

-x-

"M'kay, bye Saso-kun, Seeya later!" Ino giggled, scampering off. Sasori watched her figure disappear, then turned and walked away.

"Heyo!" Ino greeted her pink-haired friend, who'd all but slung her arm out of place pulling the blonde over to their lockers. "Don't you 'hey' me; give me progress here, progress! How are things going?" Sakura demanded sharply, causing Ino to pout.

"Great, don't be so pushy. He's totally into me, everything's going accordingly. It really seems like he's getting over that blonde kid" she said, pulling her wrist from Sakura's death grip and nursing it carefully.

Sakura sighed in relief and rubbed her hands together, smiling to herself. "Good, good. But you really should blow him or something today, make him really fall for you. And then you can dump him after the play" Sakura said.

Ino frowned, picking at her perfectly manicured nails. "Ya know Sakura, this Sasori guy really seems like a nice guy, and that blonde kid you're so pitted against seems like a real sweetheart. Is it really like, necessary to tear them apart like this, just to make a point?" the blonde girl reasoned.

A deep scowl crossed Sakura's face, and she reached forward and held Ino's shirt front threateningly. "Yes, Ino PIG it is. Now go" she hissed. Ino, hurt by the childhood insult, tottered backwards before running away.

Sakura slammed a few nearby lockers shut and rolled her eyes scoffing. "Honestly, such a liberal thinker. Why can't she just go along with the plan?"

-x-

Deidara sat in his 3rd period class, the first to arrive. He rubbed his reddened, irritated eyes, and sniffed heavily. He breathed deeply in and out, and laid his head down on the desk. This action was short lived however, as he heard someone's footsteps in the room.

His face formed a scowl at the sight of the red head entering the room, and he turned to glare at his desktop as Sasori walked in.

"Hey…" Sasori said with a sigh, walking in and sitting down. He pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to clear his thoughts. "Hey, un" Deidara replied shortly. Sasori sat down ungracefully into a nearby chair, plunking into place and spreading his legs lazily.

Deidara stared at the red head, biting a hangnail absentmindedly. "…How are things, un?" he asked, as Sasori rubbed his temples.

"Fine, fine, I guess…" he said. Deidara nodded, pretending to be uninterested, before saying what he really wanted to know. "How's Ino?" he asked. His stomach ached at just the thought of the man-stealing blonde, and his eyes stung once more.

Sasori's frown deepened as the taboo topic came to rise, and ran his hands across his face. "Great, actually, I really like being with her" he said bluntly, though it was basically a lie. He was determined not to rekindle with the blonde; it just wasn't the right time…

Deidara's brow rose in genuine surprise and he cleared his throat, before speaking again. "Really now, un?" He felt his insides ache with a dull pain, and he gripped his still-bruised abdomen as he awaited a response.

Sasori stared at the blonde, his head pounding. His dreary, muddy eyes were obviously tired, and he exhaled heavily, shutting them. "Yeah. Yeah, they are. And I'm sorry about… us. I didn't want things to end like this" he said. He opened his eyes again and, his voice far quieter, spoke once more.

"I still care about you, Dei…"

"SAAASO-KUUN!" Ino's voice squealed, echoing through the classroom and shattering all silence between the two. She dashed in and screeched to a stop at Sasori's desk, smiling brightly. "C'mon! You can afford to skip a class, come with me!" she giggled. She grabbed the red head by the wrist, pulling him up while Deidara watched.

"Sure, I guess, I'll go along with your spontaneous fun" Sasori said, faking a smile for his girlfriend. His eyes still lay on Deidara however, as Ino dragged him across the room and out of the class.

Deidara stared at his desktop once again, his hands curled in and his eyes empty. After a few minutes of silence, just before the bell, Deidara stood up, gather his things, and left.

-x-

Sasori's back slammed against the wall of the small, dark school closet, his eyes screwed shut as Ino's soft mouth attacked his neck with surprising vigor. The girl's tongue swirled his neck and her hands expertly traveled his body, and the red head groaned out in pleasure.

Opening his eyes to the dark surroundings of the closet Sasori pulled away from his girlfriend slightly, and assisted her and pulling off her top. Ino dropped to her knees and started undoing Sasori's zipper and as the puppeteer's head lolled back against the wall, Sasori thought one thing: "sorry Dei, I hope I'm making the right decision here…"

-x-

Deidara walked in a slow, dazed way through the park, his azure blue eyes glazed like the sky. He'd never cut class before, let alone left school altogether. But the sight of Sasori with that big boobed _bimbo_ of a girl, simply forced him to leave. He couldn't take it.

Deidara took the winding pebbled path down to the graveyard, admiring the tiny sprouting of plants nearby. Bits of gravel crackled beneath his feet, and he frowned as his thoughts overtook his mind.

He'd never thought a break up would hurt this much. Deidara had always been fairly sure he was gay despite his handful of minor middle school girl crushes, as he'd always wanted someone stronger than him that he could depend on. And because of that, the person he loved had the control in the relationship.

They had the choice to nourish or break the relationship.

And, against what Deidara had expected, Sasori had shattered it. He gave into the pressure and pain that came along with their dating. Smiling bitterly and giving a sour chuckle, Deidara thought to himself: "so much for vows, eh?"

Deidara turned the meandering curve of the path to the grassy graveyard, a sea of gray, black and white headstones to greet him. He paused at his parents' graves for a moment, smiling weakly. "Hey guys, un… I know, I know, skipping class, by god, I've let myself go" he said aloud, chuckling.

"Actually, un, I've got a few other people I want to visit this time around…" Deidara said softly. He reached down and ran his palm against the warm stone surface of his parents' graves, a bit of dying grass falling off their surfaces. He straightened up his posture and backed away from their graves, and slowly walked past.

He met his destination a good distance away, in front of a large, ebony black headstone that held an air of regality. The words imprinted upon the stone were large and golden, shining in the April sun. Deidara smiled softly at the unfamiliar grave, and sat down on the dried grass before them.

"Hello, um, Mr. and Ms. Akasuna, un. How are you?" Deidara said aloud, laughing nervously. A comfortable, warm breeze passed through the air, and he spoke again. "I know you're probably not aware of who I am, un, and once I tell you who I am, you'll probably be pretty confused, un".

He licked his lips, cracking his knuckles uneasily. "My name is Deidara Iwa, un; I'm seventeen, turning eighteen in about a month. And I met your son Sasori a few weeks ago" he said. He smiled weakly, wringing his blue sweatshirt's sleeve in his hands. It was getting warmer, so he pulled the top off in exchange for his white under tee.

"He's grown up to be a nice guy, Sasori, un. He's a little hard headed, stubborn, and kind of rude, un, but nice. He really cares about the people close to him, and he does what he thinks is best for them, un" Deidara said.

The blonde frowned at how he'd worded his sentence, and gave a heavy sigh. "What he thinks is best, is the problem, un. I hope it doesn't bother you guys when I tell you this but, we were dating, un. We're the lead roles in a play, romantic interests, and there's this girl that really wanted my role, un".

"Sasori decided that the pressure of it all, the play, our dating, this crazy girl, grades, was all too much. And he snapped from the weight of his responsibilities, and broke up with me, un" Deidara continued. Tears stung at his eyes, and he leant back, wiping at his eyes.

"I can't b-believe he'd do that to me, un, I mean, he was so I-impatient –hic!- to start dating, un, and then h-he –hic!- just dropped me as soon as things g-got tough, un. I t-thought he was –hic!- stronger than that, un…"

Deidara swallowed thickly, using his discarded shirt to dab at the tears streaming down his cheeks. Biting his lower lip and squeezing his eyes shut, he continued.

"And now he's dating some girl un, whose best friends with the girl that's wanted my r-role since the beginning, un! I mean, isn't it just a little suspicious that she'd suddenly like him when we broke up, un? She c-could be using him, helping this girl ruin the play, and S-Sasori's completely oblivious to it, un!"

_ Deidara smashed his sweatshirt against his eyes, wiping furiously. "A-as much as he's hurt me, un, I don't want his cluelessness to hurt him and me again, un" he said, hiccupping from the congestion in his throat._

_ Deidara hung his head low, his forehead brushing against the warm surface of the two people's grave. He stared at the ground, vision blurry from his tears. After a few minutes he shut them, his eyes stinging. Silence was present, aside from the sound of nearby tree branches in the breeze._

_ "Hm…" an unfamiliar, elderly voice said, catching Deidara's attention. "So this is what my grandson's been up to while I've been gone, breaking little boys' hearts. I see…"_

_ Deidara pulled his head up, sitting up straight, and blinked in surprise at the sight before him. An elderly woman with stringy hair pulled into a bun stood before him, holding a shut basket and a cup of steaming tea in her hand._

_ "Good afternoon young man" the woman said, smiling understandingly at Deidara, "I see my grandson's put you through quite the ringer" she said. Deidara sniffled heavily, looking at her confusedly. "Hello, m-ma'am, what do you mean, un?"_

_ She smiled ever warmer. "What I mean, young man, is that I am Grandma Chiyo, and the boy you've been talking to my daughter and step-son about, is my grandson" she said. Deidara's eyes widened in sheer shock, and he looked at her in surprise._

_ "W-what, un? S-Sasori's your grandson?" the woman's warm smile suddenly disappeared, and she scowled at him. "Why yes young man, that's what I said; multiple times" she said roughly. Deidara, blinking in surprise at her sudden, more Sasori-like mood swing, Deidara nodded quickly._

_ "Sorry ma'am, un, it's just a little surprising. Are you here to visit your family, un?" Deidara asked, letting his gaze fall to the ebony black stone below him. She smiled again, laughing softly. "Yes, yes I am. I live in the city you see, so I can only come out here every so often" she said._

_'Grandma Chiyo' as she was apparently called, offered Deidara the ceramic mug in her grip. "Here" she said, as Deidara carefully took the cup from her, "I'd brought this for myself, but you look like you could use it more than I can. I insist"_

_ Smiling, Deidara spoke quietly. "Thanks, un" he said, taking a careful gulp of the hot beverage. He blinked back tears that came to rise from the strong taste, swallowing several times afterwards. "Strong, un" he said, laughing._

_ "So, I could help but hear your little speech to my daughter and son-in-law. I see you're in quite the dilemma" Chiyo said. Deidara nodded solemnly, taking another gulp from his cup. "Yeah, un. Um, my name is Deidara, if you'd like a name to call me by" he said._

_ "Alright then, Deidara" she said, smiling softly at the blonde boy. "So, what's happened is basically that you and my grandson formed a relationship, when he suddenly decided that he was wrong to date you, and left" she questioned. Deidara nodded, itching his irritated eyes and taking another swallow of the tea. "Yeah, un" he murmured._

_ Chiyo smiled. "My Sasori was always changing his tastes as a boy. One day he loved lobster, rain boots and the color green, the next he couldn't stand sea food of any kind, wore sneakers constantly and wanted to paint his room red. Often times he'd find he really did like certain things, he just needed time to work through it himself" she said, her eyes holding a reminiscent glaze._

_ She looked Deidara straight in the eye, her odd, dark eyes penetrating his light blue ones. "My Sasori might not be one to stay consistent, but after a few tries he realizes what he really likes, what really matters to him. And if he comes back to you anytime soon, saying he's realized that he was wrong to leave you, you'd ought to let him have a second chance" she said._

_ Deidara swallowed, his stomach feeling oddly light as he took in and understood what the old woman meant. "T-thank you, un…" he murmured, nodding. She smiled gently at him and stood back up, brushing grass off her knees. _

_ "Here" she said, handing him a bouquet of flowers from her basket. "Put a few of these on my daughter's grave and her husband's, wouldn't you? And I saw you pause over at those other two headstones, friends? Why don't you lay down a few flowers for them as well?"_

_ Deidara smiled at her and took the offering, and handed her back her mug. "Thank you, un. For the tea, flowers, and comfort. Your grandson's done a number on me un, I'll tell ya that. I think I need to go home now though, un" he said. Chiyo smiled at him._

_ "Alright then, Mr. Deidara, but I need to head home as well. I can only take visits out here every once in awhile, but I hope to see you, with my Sasori, at the play this weekend" Chiyo said, standing up. She smiled at him again and reached down, patting the blonde boy on top of his head. "G-goodbye, Chiyo, un…" Deidara murmured, watching the woman walk away. He smiled softly, before standing._

_ He stared at the bouquet, running his fingertips across one of the tulip's soft petals. Deidara walked through the graveyard, setting flowers on each headstone till he ran out. Smiling once he was done, Deidara pushed his hands into his pockets and spoke under his breath to himself._

_ "Well, un, I'll give Sasori another chance, un, but he'll have to wise up and come to me, un. I'm not going to chase after him anymore…"_

_(A/N): And there you go. By the way, this is the last chapter I've got pre-written. So prepare for a possible wait for the next one. Don't forget to R/R because uh, because I'm from England. Yeah. -_- _

_Have a lovely day._


	10. Chapter 10

**(A/N):** Hrm. Wow, I really have nothing to say. Thanks for all the reviews and favorites and such last chapter, I appreciate it, and please enjoy.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto, or anything associated with it. It all belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

-x-

Deidara sighed heavily as he slipped the soft, satin dress he'd been forced to wear for his part on, the silky light blue material brushing against his chest. He'd been permitted to simply wear it over his street clothes for rehearsals, but now, at show time, he'd be going out there in nothing but it.

Still clad in his jeans Deidara leant forward, looking straight at his reflection in the mirror on the wall. His azure cerulean blue eyes were twice as bright as usual, as he'd allowed the makeup girls to put a layer of black eyeliner on him. He'd rejected their requests at first, but he had to admit now, they fit his part well.

"Hey, Nii-san" a familiar, light voice called. Deidara smiled and turned around, facing Naruto. He was clad in a thick, purple striped vest with a purple long sleeve underneath and pants to match, along with cat ears. He and Hidan had been cast as the Cheshire, as they needed more than one person to make the illusion come alive.

"Heyo Naruto, un" Deidara greeted. He reached down and started unlacing his converses. "Show starts in ten" Naruto said, approaching his older brother. Deidara nodded, ruffling the blonde's hair. "I know, un. Pretty exciting, un" he said, laughing lightly. He dropped one sneaker to the floor with a clunk, and started working on the other.

Naruto nodded. "But, Dei, are you sure you won't get hurt in the guillotine?" Naruto asked, his voice filled with concern. Deidara laughed, rolling his eyes at his brother's typical worries. In the final scene Deidara would be in a guillotine, and the 'blade' would come down right after Sasori bust in, and did his dramatic kiss.

But the blade wouldn't even touch Deidara's skin, let alone lob off his head. It'd stop by a padded block hidden from the audience, but hit a collection of hidden balloons filled with red dyed water. They'd explode like blood, and fulfill the illusion that Deidara was dead.

Deidara chuckled. "I'm positive Nii-san, don't worry about it" he said, chucking his sneaker away. "Honestly, you're such a worry wart Naruto…" he laughed.

"Yeah…" Naruto murmured, smiling softly. "It's just been really stressful, with Sakura and all. I'm actually kind of surprised, un, that Sakura didn't try anything tonight ya know, un?" Deidara said offhandedly, now pulling off his socks. He shuddered at the feeling of the cold floor on his toes.

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, I guess you could say we're lucky for that… Dei…" Naruto reached forward, holding his brother's wrist. Deidara blinked and looked up, his slighter darker eyes meeting his sibling's light blue ones. "Hm?" he questioned.

"I'm really proud of you. You've been through a lot, I know, moving, mom and dad, Sakura, and of course, Sasori… But you've pulled through it all, and I'm proud of you, you know? You really showed them that you're the stronger man" Naruto said. He smiled at the end of his little speech, running a thumb over his sibling's wrist.

Deidara grinned goofily. "Thanks, Nii-san, un. Now come here, hug time" he said. Naruto chuckled as he was enveloped in a familiar, warm hug, and his face was pressed against the silky fabric of the dress. After a moment they pull away, both smiling.

"Now hurry up" Naruto said, laughing, "five minutes till show time" he said. Deidara nodded. He turned back around, sliding his jeans off and dropping them on the ground. After pulling on the pair of black, shiny shoes he was required to wear with them, Deidara turned to the mirror.

He turned, once again looking at his reflection. He smiled softly to himself, but after a moment sighed to himself. "Show time" he murmured.

-x-

Sasori sighed heavily, his phone pressed to his ear as he struggled to the lace the tall black boots he wore. "Yeah, yeah Gran, I'm _in _the play. Just wait for the tea time scene, okay? I think its like, scene four or something, okay? Yeah, love you too Gran…" he groaned into his phone, snapping it shut.

"Honestly, she's in the freakin' audience. You think she could be a bit more damn patient…" he muttered to himself, tying off his boots. He wore the stereotypical hat, dark green and tall with a yellow stripe. Along with that he wore a dark brown long coat, a green pinstripe button up, brown pants, and his rather tall boots. He thought he portrayed the Hatter rather well.

He turned and checked out his appearance, cringing at his dark ringed, muddy brown eyes, and his overgrown hair. He hadn't slept well for the last few weeks, but he hoped it was simply the result of the stress of the play. He rolled his eyes. "_Yeah, right…_" he thought to himself.

A familiar, high pitched giggle drew Sasori's attention, and he turned to see Ino at the door. She was playing a variety of smaller roles, including Alice's sister. Thus she wouldn't be able to spend too much time with Sasori during the scenes he wasn't on.

Ino, aware of this fact, pranced up to her boyfriend, with a pout on her face. She all but threw herself at Sasori; whom in response caught her. Sasori felt his face flush as she gazed up at him, with big, watery blue eyes.

"Aw, Saso! Darn you being so talented, and getting the lead" she giggled, kissing the red head's neck. Sasori rolled his eyes, hugging the curvaceous girl. "Mm hm. But its okay, we'll hang out after the show okay?" he offered.

Ino's expression suddenly changed, mischievous and rather suggestive. "Or…" she said, her voice a simple sing song. "You could run off with me for a bit during intermission" she giggled. Sasori frowned, leaning away from her a bit.

"Ino" he said sternly. "I go on like, ten minutes into the first scene after intermission. We can't, I might miss my cue. That'd be a giant disaster and you know it" he said, staring at her determinedly. Ino pouted, but her mind was panicking.

"_Shit, I've gotta convince him somehow, or Sakura's plan won't go through, think dammit, think! Curse him for having good morals!" _she thought to herself.

The lights of the theatre darkened and lit back up several times in a row, drawing the two teens' attention. Sasori swore under his breath, pushing Ino further from him and dropping his hat onto his head. "I've gotta go Ino. We'll talk about this later okay?" he grabbed his cane, kissed the girl on the cheek, and left before Ino could say another word.

Ino felt her brain go into overdrive as she heard the introducer begin to speak, and leant against the dresser, her legs going weak. "Sakura's gonna KILL me!" she cried. She licked her lower lip thoughtfully, breathing carefully.

Finally she seemed to think of something, breathing a sigh of relief. "I'll just have to drag him off long enough for him to miss his cue, in that storage closet with the lock on the outside… Everything will be fine; Sakura's plan will work… The kissing scene will come to play, and the guillotine will come down before Sasori can arrive!" she told herself. She grinned, giggling happily to herself.

-x-

Deidara blinked as he entered the backstage, his hair sticking to his sweaty skin. The behind the scene were madness. Naruto was chasing after his Cheshire counterpart, Hidan, across the stage as he'd stolen the blonde's cell phone, Kisame was in the midst of trying to help Itachi get out of the Caterpillar costume he was trapped in, and Konan had a splinter from their croquet scene.

Swerving through the crowds of madness, Deidara practically collapsed when he finally reached his dresser. Cringing as his legs slammed into the hard surface, he sighed heavily.

"Hey, your make up's a bit smudged, want some _help?_" a malicious, familiar voice spoke. Deidara groaned and looked up, to see, as he expected, Sakura standing there with her usual cold grin. He ran a hand through his hair.

"Sure un, just, use MY eyeliner to fix it, un, okay?" he said cautiously, pulling the case of eyeliner he'd purchased early from its' safe place in his Alice dress' s pocket. Sakura, apparently unfazed, only smiled wider. "Sure, of course, _Dei"_ she cackled. Deidara sighed and plunked down in his seat, allowing the pinkette far closer to his face then he'd ever wanted.

"_Damn bitch…_" he thought to himself as she dabbed at his face with a wet cloth. Sakura smirked to herself, expression hidden, and resisted cackling in victory.

-x-

Sasori groaned aloud, pulling on his wrist as hard as he could. "INO! God damn it, let me go! I told you no, I need to get back to the set!" he nearly shouted as the blonde haired girl dragged him with a death grip through the halls of the school.

He slammed his feet down, only to have Ino pull him out of balance, causing him to stumble and trip. Ino continued to drag him along, and he swore angrily. "_Damn her and her iron grip…_" he thought to himself. He glanced at a clock as they passed it, and saw the show had started once more already.

Ino suddenly stopped dead, and Sasori slammed into her back. "Ino, what the hell? What are you trying to d-" he had no time to prepare as he was shoved through a nearby doorway, into inky darkness. He heard the door shut, and the metallic clunk of the lock mechanism. "_Shit…_" he thought to himself.

Ino stood, her back pressed against the door. Sasori glared at her. "Ino. Move. This isn't all fun and games, and Anko will fail my sorry ass if I miss the pillar moment of the play" he ordered. He was supposed to time his entrance very carefully. A dozen balloons filled with red dyed water were hidden in the guillotine, so that when it came down it'd appear to have lobbed Deidara's head off, when in fact it hadn't even grazed his skin.

Inside her mind, Ino was panicking. "_SHIT. He's totally focused on the play, there's no way I can seduce him now, how the hell do I keep him occupied!_" she thought to herself furiously. Sasori took a step towards her, and she felt her panic levels sky rocket.

"Ino" he said, his voice strained and laced with warning. "Move. This is not okay. You know how important this is to me, and as my girlfriend, you should MOVE" he growled. Ino swallowed; her throat thick. Out of nowhere in pure impulse Ino lunged at the red head, attacking his lips with her own.

Sasori felt his anger boil, and he shoved her off of him. "INO!" he roared, wiping his mouth. He felt the slimy, cold residue of her saliva on his lips, and bile began to rise in his throat. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?" he shouted. Ino was crumpled on the floor, looking at him with fear and shame.

He felt his brain go into overdrive, thoughts smashing into his brain at a million miles an hour. He couldn't STAND this, this, stupid, slutty bitch! And she was about to make him miss his play. His eyes widened as it all clicked into place, shock pulsing in his veins.

"You…" he whispered, his voice barely audible. Ino's eyes widened in panic, and she crawled backwards away from the red haired teenager. "You, you've done all this for Ino, haven't you? You never liked me… You never cared; all you care about is how many guys you can bang in a week! Thank god I didn't let you have sex with me; you're probably a damn cesspool of STDS!" Ino's eyes began to brink with tears.

"I fucking ruined Deidara's whole life here, because you, you and that damn pink-haired whore, TRICKED ME!" he nearly screamed. Ino let out a choked, suffocated sob, nodding vigorously in fear. She gasped, and spoke in a shaky cry.

"I-I'm, I'm sorry!" she cried. Sasori, overtaken with rage, lunged for the door, smashing the handle clean off with his boot. "Sorry my ass, you whore…" he growled. Ino watched with blurry vision as the teenager shoved the door open, and ran out.

After a few seconds of empty silence in the darkened room Ino felt her muscles give out, and she collapsed on the floor. Hugging herself as sobs racked her body, Ino breathed weakly. She licked her lower lips, shutting her eyes.

"I-I'm, so sorry…"

-x-

A steady, fast beat of clunks on the linoleum floors echoed through the empty hallways, and Sasori lunged around a corner like a true mad man. His calves burned from the speed he was going at, and his arms pumped up and down at his sides.

The red haired teen bit his lower lip, nearly to the point of bleeding. He saw a nearby clock, and his panic levels rose. "_STUPID!_" he thought to himself. "_You call yourself smart, what were you thinking, dumb ass. Anyone could've seen it was too big a coincidence for Ino to like me… STUPID!_"

Sasori all but smashed his body into the auditorium doors, and they echoed at extreme volumes as he crashed through them. Sasori continued to run, not caring that he hadn't checked if it was his time or that this wasn't the right entrance. He sprinted past the rows of the audience, earning gasps.

His feet thundered like mad on the metal steps to the stage, and he stumbled onto his knees, sliding at rug burn speeds across the stage. Melting into his character, Sasori shouted as loud as he could:

"ALICE!"

His lips mashed against Deidara's, barely avoiding clinking teeth. His eyes were glued shut as he kissed the blonde artist for the first time in weeks, but prayed for the watery explosion that would assure him he'd timed his entrance right.

His eyes opened and a victorious grin plastered itself on his face as he felt a gush of cold water hit his body, not caring that it'd soaked his face and torso. He pulled away from Deidara just as the lights went dark, and applause erupted throughout the theatre. His muddy eyes found Deidara's light blue, wide eyes in the dark, and he smiled even wider, water dripping down his face.

Deidara slid his head easily out of the guillotine and frowned at Sasori, his expression expectant and confused. "Had a change of heart, un?" he questioned. Sasori felt heat flush to his face; he'd nearly forgotten that he wasn't dating the blonde anymore in his moment of victory.

"Um…" he murmured, licking water off his lips. He still cradled Deidara's head in his grip, and he stroked the soaked, blonde locks of his ex thoughtfully. "Yeah… " he said, laughing nervously. He turned his expression solemn however, and spoke again, the room still dark.

"Listen… I'm sorry Deidara. But you know we went to fast into this, and I panicked. I thought we might be wrong for each other, and I backed out like a coward with thinking. I was wrong" he said. Deidara nodded thoughtfully, soaking in what the red head had said.

Deidara smiled, and Sasori felt relief flood his body. "It's… okay, un, Sasori. I won't lie and say you didn't hurt me, you did, un, and you were a retard for not realizing that Ino wasn't genuine, un" he chuckled, and Sasori's face flushed. "But…" he murmured, watching Sasori with a soft expression. He leant forward, kissing the red head gently on the lips. Sasori leant into the embrace, desperate for the blonde's sweet, familiar taste to wash away another's.

Deidara pulled away, smiling. "I've had an influence or two to make me experience a change of heart, un" he said. His gaze traveled out into the crowd, and he smiled as he spotted Chiyo.

Sasori grinned and reached forward over the guillotine, hugging Deidara firmly. He buried his lips in the blonde's shoulder, embracing him tightly. "Good" he whispered, laughing. Deidara laughed as well, hugging him back. Sasori kissed the blonde on the collarbone before pulling away, light flooding the theatre. "I love you Dei…" he murmured. Deidara felt his face flush with heat, and he grinned goofily. "I love you too, Sasori…" he whispered.

"HEY!" a familiar, loud, obnoxious voice shouted. The two reunited teenagers turned in surprise, only to find Hidan, still in his Cheshire attire, watching them with a grin. The rest of Akatsuki stood behind them, all with their respective, knowing smirks.

"If you two could wait a few hours before fucking, we're going to a movie" Kisame offered, chuckling hoarsely. Deidara grinned, blushing and hiding behind Sasori. The red head chuckled, waving them off. "Idiots. We'll be there in a minute…" he said. The rest of their group nodded, teasing laughs filling the air as they walked away.

Sasori helped heave his reunited lover up, smiling. "Hey Dei…" he said aloud. Deidara blinked, looking up at him. "Yeah, un?" he questioned. "Why don't we skip the movie… Go lock a certain pink-haired whore in the janitor's closet for the night?" he said, chuckling.

Deidara grinned, and found Sasori's hand with his own. The wrapped their fingers together, laughing. "Sure, un. Better than whatever else we could plan" he said. Sasori smiled, ruffling Deidara's hair with his free hand. "Definitely…" he murmured.

-x-

(A/N): Holy shit, it's the end. I totally didn't expect this to progress as fast as it did, and I tried to draw things out, but… It's the end. Lol, I really, really, really hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to review this last chapter. Even if you haven't reviewed a single time before please review this one, just so I know if you guys liked it or not. I really wanna keep writing these stories; they're great fun and a good stress reliever.

**PLEASE READ: **I am going to post another story soon, possibly more than one. I know at least one of them will be a SasoDei, so whether you like me for my writing or for SasoDei, you should watch for that.

Have a lovely day.


End file.
